Handcuffs
by Leeseylou3316
Summary: Arthur, a police Deputy, is blackmailed by criminal, Eames to revisit a former profession. Even though Arthur feels he is supposed to hate Eames, he feels an uncontrollable need to get to know the man better, and uncover the secrets of his past. M for sex
1. Chapter 1

**Warnings for this chapter: Graphic** **violence, language, and sexual references**

_Seven devils all around you_

_Seven devils in your house_

_See I was dead when I woke up this morning_

_I'll be dead before the day is done_

Chapter 1: Seven Devils

_**Eames**_

Numb. That's what I felt. Absolutely nothing at all. My legs were pumping uncontrollably fast, the pavement pounding against the soles of my shoes and my knees absorbing the shock of the impact. I couldn't feel the pain. I couldn't feel the blood seeping through my shirt and the pins and needles on the balls of my feet for running in leather dress shoes, and my body screaming out for me to stop sprinting. But I knew I couldn't stop. I couldn't stop even if I tried.

I had shut out everything around me, except for what was straight ahead of me. The red sedan. Get in the red sedan. I ignored the gunshots whizzing past me, narrowly missing my arms and legs by inches. The screams and shouts of the officers turned into muffled cries, as if I were ten feet underwater.

Black spots started to creep around my vision, and I willed God in heaven to let me make it to the red sedan. Fifteen feet, fourteen feet, thirteen feet…

The terrifyingly loud screech of tires rang through my ears behind me and I nearly turned to look over my shoulder. Rules of running from the pigs include: _do not_ look behind you. In fact, never look behind you when running from _anything_.

However, in this case, looking over my shoulder might have helped me. Might have saved me had I known that two coiled wires were propelling towards my back, and about to dig into my skin through my clothes with hooked fangs and jolt me with 50,000 volts of electrical current. I would soon regard that as the worst mistake I ever made.

After I had finished my rather intense electrical-induced seizure, I fell forward and collapsed onto the disgusting pavement. The last thing I remember was seeing the red sedan drive away, and a pair of black shoes standing in front of my face. And then… I was numb again.

People always describe their being unconscious as black and void and soundless. That day, my unconscious was filled with bright flashing lights and swirling colors to keep me company, rather than the dark empty recesses of my mind. Or was that just from the stun gun? Either way, after a few seconds (Hours? Days?) my eyes fluttered open, and I was handcuffed to one of the metal bars surrounding me in the Major Crimes Unit in the lovely city of Los Angeles.

Now fully awake and alert, I looked around, noticing the crowds of tough-looking men, mostly gang-related. A stifled groan rumbled in my throat as I rolled up into a sitting position, wincing in pain. I wasn't numb anymore. Everything hurt, from the pounding headache to my back muscles to the chaffed skin around the handcuffs. Particularly, the most pain emitting from a spot in my side. Oh right. I had been shot.

Apparently, the pigs felt sorry enough for me to have the gaping hole that just barely missed my ribcage get patched up. I chuckled at the thought of the doctors rushing to save such filth like me, knowing that I've killed hundreds of people, and probably am responsible for thousands more. I briefly wondered if the thought crossed any of their minds. Just a simple slip of the hand while stitching up the open wound centimeters from my vital organs and they could have taken out another son-of-a-bitch who is responsible for all the evil and no good in this god forsaken world.

But I suppose that's why they're the doctors and _I'm_ the criminal.

"Eames," A rough voice spoke across the cell, and I looked up from the bench I was sitting on to see a pudgy officer holding a pale yellow folder and searching the crowded cell. "Is there an Eames in here?"

"Present," I spoke in a smooth and calm voice, disguising any amount of pain that I had been feeling at the moment.

His eyes immediately darkened. "Get your ass over here. You're going to have a little talk with the Sergeant," the man spoke in the most patronizing manner, and I snickered.

"Well, darling, I would be _delighted_. However, there is a small problem. You see, there are these things called handcuffs, and unfortunately, your men decided it would be a jolly good idea to slap these lovely- " I clanged the cuffs against the bars, metal against metal, "beauties on my wrists for shits and giggles. Because in case you didn't notice from the bloodied skin underneath, these cuffs are fitted for a _five-year-old_ and digging into my skin,"

Officer Pudgy made some sort of unattractive noise between a snort and a growl before he circled the outside of the cell where I sat wallowing in my suffering.

"Alright, _mate_," he mocked my accent with a sneer as he kneeled down and yanked the chain of the cuffs towards his belly. "Want me to wipe that smart-ass smile off your face?"

I tried with all my might not to let my pain show, but the jagged metal against my wrists contorted my face. The fat bastard laughed at my pained expression like some sort of sadist and stuck a small key into the hole. "If I could have my way, you would be laying dead in a fucking gutter with your stomach ripped out you murdering son of a bitch-" his voice grew low and harsh before a hand came down on his shoulder.

"Officer Reagan, report to my office immediately. You will wait for me there once I am done speaking with Mr. Eames,"

My eyes flashed up to meet the dark brown one's of the man who stood over Officer Pudgy, his expression uptight and strict. We locked eyes for a good four seconds before he broke eye contact and met Officer Pudgy's confused expression.

My heart increased as I recognized who this man was.

"Go," he ordered again, sounding more regimented, like a drill sergeant at an army camp.

Officer Pudgy begrudgingly climbed to his feet, taking his keys with him and turned to leave the tall dark-haired man standing above me like a sort of looming skyscraper. Everything about this man radiated _power_. From the impeccable leather business shoes to the clean pressed black suit and charcoal tie. But not only the clothes wore gave him an aura of ultimate authority. The way he stood, back rigid and tall, shoulder back and open, chin lifted and straight, showed how controlled he was. This was Police Deputy Arthur Davis. This was the man I was looking for.

Arthur finally bent down and removed his key ring from the inside of his black jacket. "I'm sorry you had to go through this. These are illegal handcuffs, obviously, and I am not sure where the officers got them. I do know who was responsible, and they are being taken care of."

I stared in awe at the hardened expression, the straight jaw line, the creamy skin free of stubble, the onyx hair slicked back with gel, and the thin rosebud-colored lips. I'd seen blurry newspaper photos and pixilated news footage of this man, but I had never realized the true magnitude of his beauty until I saw it up close. He was the most beautiful man I've ever seen.

The blasted handcuffs finally fell free of my burning wrists and Arthur straightened up before sliding them into his jacket pocket and walking around to unlock the cell door again. "Come on, Mr. Eames, we're going to have a little talk."

In a daze, I slowly stood up, gripping my bandaged side and pushed my way through the mass of huge, disgusting men. When I reached the exit, Arthur held up his hand, signaling me to stop. "I know you're in pain," he motioned to my wrists, rubbed red and raw from the jagged handcuffs, before he reached to his holster and pulled off a normal-looking pair of handcuffs, "But I'm going to put these on." He didn't sound at all like he had any remorse for what the corrupt officers did to me.

Nevertheless, I rolled my eyes and held out my wrists, letting the cool smooth metal slide over my wrists. I flinched when he snapped them shut, but clenched my jaw shut and held my chin high.

"Darling, you can cuff me anytime," I shot Arthur a wink and held my wrists out to him. For a fleeting moment, he looked taken aback by the comment, and almost shocked, before his expression changed back to that of a stoic and he rolled his eyes before grabbing me by the chain of the handcuffs and leading me to the interrogation room.

I bit my lip in amusement as the stiff man yanked me through crowds of police officers and cuffed criminals, until we finally entered a room. I squinted through the dim lights to see a few other officers surrounding the one-way glass of the interrogation room. And so the game began.

My arms were recuffed behind my back, just in case I decided to take on an armed officer with my bare hands, and a blinding light was shone straight into my eyes.

The Arthur walked back around and sat across from me. "Comfortable?"

"Delightfully," I replied sarcastically and squinted as my eyes refocused to the light. I could barely see the man's face.

"Do you know why you're here Mr. Eames? " He spoke clearly and smoothly.

"Vaguely," I sighed and began to tap my foot against the ground.

"Would you like to tell me what's going on?" Arthur leaned forward. His narrow face came into view under the light. His eyes were hard and rigid.

I clenched my jaw shut and stared stubbornly at him, not wanting to give him what he wanted just yet. Arthur noticed my demeanor and rolled his neck in a few circles, before standing up and undid the cuffs from around my wrist. I sighed in relief, bringing my hands forth and massaging the red skin with the pads of my thumbs, watching every movement of the beautiful man as he sat back down across from me.

"Better?" he asked.

"Why, yes darling, but I can't see you," I set my elbows down on the cool metal table and leaned forward.

Arthur looked over to the one-way glass and made a motion for the lights to be turned on. In a matter of seconds, I was blinking and looking into his face again. For the most ephemeral of moments, I caught a certain softness and energy radiating from his expression. Then as quickly as I had seen it, it was gone. His jaw hardened, his eyes darkened, and I was met with an intense glare that sent chills up my spine.

"I'm Deputy Chief Arthur Davis." He said curtly and nodded. "I understand from your file, that you have over a hundred proven counts of murder, stealing, forgery, smuggling, abduction, espionage, possessing illegal weapons, political offense, trespassing, and possession of illegal drugs." The room rang with the echo of his voice. "Did I miss any?"

"Ah, yes, I believe you forgot dangerously handsome," I tilted my head cockily and gave him a ghost of a smirk.

His eyebrow furrowed in irritation and his mouth formed a straight line in disapproval. "_Mr. Eames_," he said my name like he was scolding a four-year-old, "Do you know that you are the most wanted man in America right now?"

"Of course," I ran a hand through my hair egotistically. "I can't go a day without seeing my name in the headlines. They've made me a celebrity,"

"You're a criminal," Arthur's eyebrows were so slanted in anger, it almost looked exaggerated. I fought back a chortle.

"Why yes, how kind of you to notice," I said as if he were commenting on the weather.

Arthur exhaled sharply in frustration and began again, "There's a good reason you're here Mr. Eames. You're responsible for the death of not hundreds, but _thousands_ of people. And you're telling me that you don't feel any remorse at all?"

I raised an eyebrow and held my tongue. That wasn't completely true. But I couldn't let him know that. It would shatter the illusion. "Many of them deserved it… Many were lying, cheating, no good filth."

"Like you?" Arthur lifted his eyebrows accusingly.

I paused for a moment, my mouth hanging open in shock before I shook off the insult and continued. "Do I seem like a cold-hearted man?"

"Cold-hearted men are usually the ones who commit hundreds of criminal acts," Arthur stated coldly.

I shrugged, "I don't kill for recreation, and I don't kill unless I have a good reason. So trust me, I have damn good reasons when I do."

"That doesn't change the fact that you _have_ committed a criminal offense among the many others on your file," Arthur continued. "Stealing? How about that one? All those banks that you robbed, did those people deserve it?"

"Now that's different." I rolled my eyes.

"How? How is anything that you do justified?" Arthur snapped.

"I can't justify every little thing that I do," I snapped back. "How is what you do justified? You hire corrupt assholes that treat their prisoners like absolute shit. Now correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't every abiding citizen have constitutional rights against stuff like _this_?" I held out my bloodied wrists and glared at Arthur.

"We're not talking about me!" Arthur shot up abruptly, sending his chair tumbling backwards with an ear-shattering clatter. "I'm here to find out where you're keeping Mal Cobb!"

I lifted the corners of my mouth at his frustration. "Now what in the world makes you think I have anything to do with the abduction of the Chief's wife?"

Arthur was practically seething, "Your men, your job."

"I don't have 'men'" I used air quotes, "per say. I hire new men all the time and then let them do as they please. I don't require them to stay loyal to me specifically."

"One mentioned your name," Arthur growled. "Where is she?"

I and shook my head. "How should I know? She could be _anywhere_…"

"She's been missing for three days now, and we've torn L.A. apart looking for her. So she's not here anymore. You must have transported her somewhere else, where the hell is she?" Arthur's face was beginning to flush in outrage.

I contemplated his words for a moment before I opened my mouth again, "I'd like to speak to the Chief of Police." I requested pleasantly.

Arthur sighed, his breathing returning to normal patterns as he stared me down intensely. I tried to decipher his expression to find out what he was thinking, but his face was kept hard and unyielding. Even during his outbursts, he was able to keep his emotions on lock. I could have fun with this man. Pushing him and pushing him until I was able to see through the cracks of his calm exterior and reveal the emotional side. He would become my new challenge. And boy did I love a good challenge.

He finally straightened out, smoothing his jacket, and turned on his heel to leave through the door.

"Will you come back darling?" I fake pouted, leaning back and propping my feet up on the table.

"We'll see Mr. Eames," He said without turning around, and left the room abruptly.

A deafening silence fell over the room, and I sighed and leaned back, knowing the pigs outside the enclosed room were still watching me. Closing my eyes, I smirked as I pictured Arthur's face all flushed and enraged, silently wondering if he would have the same expression if I planted a kiss on those beautiful lips. Shaking my head, I awoke from my thoughts and looked at the chair in front of me.

I needed to stop letting these lustful feelings get in the way of the job, and reminded myself why I was here. I needed to gauge Cobb's emotional reactivity, and use it to my advantage.

I abruptly sat up when a loud clang signaled the entry of none other than the Chief of Police, Dominic Cobb. The last time we had a run-in, I was in the middle of a drug deal. He and his men had squeezed the location out of one of my ex-men whom they had gotten a hold of somehow. That was a nearly a year ago. When I saw him last, he was collected and vibrant with a noticeable determination and mental strength. Now, he burst into the room with bags underneath his eyes, his long blonde locks splayed around his face like a wild lion's mane, and his suit rumpled and in disarray.

I jumped when he slammed a fist down on the table in front of me and stared me down straight in the eye like a beast about to make a kill. "Where's. My. _Wife?_" He said dangerously low, practically a whisper.

I chuckled before I spoke again, "Hello there Cobb, nice seeing you here. The last time I saw you, however, you looked a little more… well-rested," I couldn't help the smirk that spread across my face.

I could see the seething man trying to contain his rage, but it obviously wasn't effective enough. His hands shot out and grabbed me by the lapels of my jacket, pulling me close to his enraged face. "Where is she?" he shouted.

"Ah, ah, ah," I held up an index finger. "It's not that easy."

"What are you getting at you sick bastard?" He tugged my lapels again, jarring my head back and forth. "I swear if you hurt her-"

"Me?" I asked innocently, "Why, you and your pigs have me locked up here. How on earth could I possibly hurt her?"

"You know what I mean!" He pulled me up with brute strength, so my ass hovered a good three inches off the seat. "What do you want? What compelled you to abduct the woman I love?"

I gave him another malicious smile and let out a choked cough. The material bunching around my neck so tightly was not doing well for my oxygen supply. Cobb noticed this before he released my jacket and dropped me back into my seat.

"I don't want anything, darling. She's an awfully pretty woman, and I'm sure whoever whisked her away from you had a good reason." I said calmly.

"Stop diverting the blame, Eames, I _know_ you're responsible for this!"

"You don't know anything," I cocked an eyebrow.

Cobb looked broken. I admit, I felt bad for the man. But he was so fun to play with, and I wasn't going to let up just yet.

"You have ten minutes in the cell." Cobb said darkly before he straightened up and walked around to recuff me. "If you don't start giving some answers, things are going to get ugly very fast, I can assure you that."

"Whatever you say, darling," I smirked and stood up as he dragged me out of the interrogation room. He yanked my wrists so hard, I winced, my skin still tender from the previous handcuffs I had on. Once we passed through the crowded lobby bustling with busy officers, I quickly scanned the room for an easy target.

I quickly locked my eyes on a young officer who was busy reading files. Cobb walked me closer and closer, and I dropped my pace, so that Cobb was practically dragging me. The young officer was three feet away, two feet, one foot… I purposefully dragged my toe over a passing man's foot, automatically losing my balance. Cobb didn't slow, and my arms were dragged out in front of me, causing me to fall directly into the young man I had been aiming for.

"Oh good Lord, I'm terribly sorry," I muttered after I had stealthily slipped the officers key ring from his holster and slid it over my index finger.

"Watch it Eames!" Cobb snapped and yanked me forward.

The flustered young man was too preoccupied with picking up the spilt papers to notice I had stolen his keys, and I grinned silently to myself as I followed Cobb back to the cell.

The loud clang of the cell door reverberated in my ears, and I watched Cobb's back disappear from sight. Quickly, I counted the number of guards surrounding the cell. Six. Six men I would need to kill. Making my way to the back of the cell, I sat down next to a burly Latino man who gave me a curious glance.

"Good evening," I nodded before I slipped the key ring off my finger, making sure none of the guards were looking at us too closely.

"You're Eames. William Eames right?" The man asked me cautiously. "The one who abducted the Chief's wife?"

"That's right," I looked back down and shifted the cuffs so I could maneuver the key into the hole, which I had become particularly good at after years of practicing.

"You're the one that they talk about all the time?" the man's eyes widened.

I nodded, and bit my lip in concentration, finally able to turn the key, which snapped open the handcuffs with a soft _click_. Looking up, I surveyed the guards in the room again, making sure they were still preoccupied.

"You got the keys?" the man eyed the keys around my finger.

"Yes, I do," I nodded, and held up my index finger. "Do _not_ say anything until I give the word. I have a knife sewn into the waistband of my trousers. It will take about two minutes for me to get out. I need to you tell some of the other men to somehow create a commotion, something that would get the guards to open the door.

"Yeah, sure." The large man looked around at some of the other men in the cell, and slowly stood up, making his way around the area, whispering to the other prisoners discreetly. I shuffled over so I was almost out of view of most of the guards in the room before I pulled up the front of my shirt and ripped off one of the threads on the waistband of my trousers. A small gap in the seaming formed, and slowly but surely, I pulled out each stitch on the waistband, unfolding the fabric to reveal a small switchblade. It took me about a minute and a half.

The Latino man I had spoken to previously sat back down next to me and murmured almost silently, "One of the guys snuck a lighter. He's gonna light his jacket on fire and hopefully that will be big enough to catch the guards attention."

"Oh I'm sure it will," I smiled. Four minutes had passed since Cobb threw me in the cell. Six minutes remained.

I sat patiently as a tall skinny man casually slid his cotton jacket off of his shoulders, letting it fall to the ground. None of the guards noticed. Slowly, he knelt down and lifted his long stringy hair, removing something from behind his ear. I squinted to see that it was indeed a lighter. After opening the lid, he turned and shot me a glance. I nodded ever so slightly, and watched as he ignited the flame and lit the clothing on fire.

"Hey!" One of the guards had _finally_ seen the flame and ran over to the cell, yanking out his key ring. "Stay back!" He shouted at the other men in the cell. "Get an extinguisher!" he barked at a few of the other guards.

Two left. That left four guards in the room. The one who entered the cell would be easy to take out. I would only need to reach the other three before they called the Chief, or worse, pulled out their guns.

Gripping my switchblade so tightly, it almost hurt, I watch very closely as two of the men entered the cell and attempted to stomp out the fire. My heart rate increased as I rapidly stood up and strode over to the frantic Officer before opening the blade with a loud _click_, and ramming it straight into the back of the Officer's head. The knife buried into the man's brain up to the hilt before I yanked it out, letting a gush of blood squirt out, the man let out a muffled groan before falling face forward. I quickly gabbed the flaming jacket and threw it in the face of the other Officer before yelling, "Now!" My knife buried deep in the man's stomach before I yanked out and led the flood of men from the holding tank.

The prisoners escaped ahead of me before running towards the other guards who were fumbling for their guns. I sprinted towards the closet guard and lashed out, slitting his throat open in one smooth motion. I ignored the warm spray of blood hitting my face and continued towards the other guard who had yanked out his gun.

My heart stopped as he lifted his gun, and with precision taking years to master, I aimed and flung my switch blade forward, watching as it spun and buried deep in the man's throat before he could remove the safety on his gun.

He attempted to shriek as I approached him rapidly and snatched the gun from his trembling hands, but the shrieks were turned into muffled gurgles, blood spilling down the front of his shirt. He clawed at his throat, in panic, and I felt a twist of guilt, as I pulled out the knife and, stabbing him in the stomach a few times, attempted to put him out of his misery. When he finally fell forwards in a slump, I whirled around and quietly thanked the men around me before wiping the blade on the uniform of a dead officer and exiting the room silently.

It was time to find the Deputy.

_Holy water cannot help you now_

_A thousand armies couldn't keep me out_

_I don't want your money_

_I don't want your crown_

_See I have to burn your kingdom down_

Disclaimer: I don't own Inception. All rights reserved to Warner Brothers.

**A/N: Thank you so much for reading! This is my first Inception fanfic, and I am pretty proud of what I've written. I have big plans for this story, and I'm so excited to see how you guys react to it! I am a HUGE Joseph Gordon-Levitt fan, but I also obviously loved Tom Hardy in Inception. I used to be a huge Ariadne/Arthur fan, and although they are adorable together, Arthur/Eames is my favorite coupling now. They are both gorgeous and perfect, and they deserve each other :)**

**Please review! Thanks!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Warnings: Language, graphic violence, and sexual references**

_Hydrogen in our veins, it cannot hold itself, my blood is pouring_

_And the pressure in our bodies that echoes up above it is exploding_

_And our particles that burn it all because they yearn for each other_

_And although we stick together it seems that we are estranging one another_

Chapter 2: Strangeness & Charm

_**Arthur**_

That goddamn son of a bitch. I tightened my hands into fists as I speed-walked through the lobby of the Police Department, looking for Cobb. He would throw a hissy fit if he knew I had talked to Eames before he had.

The blonde-haired man finally came into view and a wave of relief washed over me. But the feeling was only transient. "Chief!" I called and approached Dominic Cobb, who was talking to Ariadne. "Hello Detective," I greeted her.

"Oh, Deputy, I was just looking for you. Listen I need you to go get Mr. Eames, I'm gonna go talk-" Cobb started but was interrupted when I cut in

"Actually, sir, he's in the interrogation room already. I… talked to him a bit," I braced myself for the yelling.

Cobb's mouth dropped open slightly before he widened his eyes, "Goddammit, Arthur, I told you to wait for me! _Dammit_!" he excused himself from Ariadne before he flew past me in the other direction.

I winced, and shrugged, catching Ariadne's eye. "I shouldn't have mentioned that I talked to him already."

"Well, why not?" Ariadne asked, "At the most, you just warmed him up for Cobb. I'm sure Cobb will be ten times time more vocal than you were,"

"Yeah, that's for sure," I sighed and ran a hand over my hair, making sure it was smooth and in place.

Ariadne looked at me suspiciously. "How was it?"

I stopped and looked up at her slowly, not knowing exactly what to say, "He is something else. I mean, really, I've never interrogated a criminal like him. He's so incredibly overconfident in himself. I just don't understand how he kidnapped Cobb's wife without even laying a hand on her. He practically has all his outside men doing everything. I'm surprised they haven't burst in here with guns to bust him out yet."

"Don't jinx it," Ariadne scolded me, before turning on her heel. "I'm going to make copies of these files. Wanna join?"

"Alright, I suppose. We won't have anything to do until Cobb is finished with Eames." I followed the petite brunette down the hallway and into the main office. Busy officers bustled about, writing reports and making phone calls.

The door shut behind us as I watched Ariadne start up the copy machine. As I noticed details about the woman, like how her wavy brown hair was fastened into a low ponytail which fell between her shoulder blades, and how precise and controlled her movements were, I asked myself for the millionth time since I met her, why I never have had feelings for her. It that she wasn't attractive or anything, she was certainly a pretty young woman.

I tried to picture us dating, and practically burst out laughing. Besides the fact that it was wildly inappropriate for coworkers to date each other, I never would see her as more than a friend.

I shook the thought from my head as I stepped forward and began to catch the papers being spit out from the machine.

"Arthur," Ariadne suddenly spoke.

"Yes?" I responded.

"What…" she began, but almost couldn't finish. "What are we going to do if Dom doesn't find out where Mal is?"

The question had been floating around in everyone's mind for the last couple of days. Mal had been missing for quite a few days now, and the station has been on a wild goose chase, led by Eames' inside men, until we were finally able to track down the man himself. Everyone thought that this would mean we would get Mal's whereabouts for sure, but after talking to Eames, I wasn't so sure. I got a bad feeling that extracting a simple location was going to take more than scolding the man like a teacher would a fifth grader.

"I don't know, Ari," I finally answered weakly. "I just don't know."

We jumped in unison when the door to the copy room burst open and Sergeant Nash entered the room in a fluster. "Eames is gone!"

"What!" Ariadne and I yelled in unison.

"He broke out. I don't know how, but he murdered four guards in the holding tank, and burst out with all twenty-two men that we had been holding there." Nash shook his head and ran a hand through his curly hair.

"Oh my God," I immediately threw the papers I had been holding onto a nearby table and followed Nash out of the copy room and into the hectic office where officers were running out to the lobby.

"Let me through!" I yelled and pushed my way towards the crowds of men. "Where's the Chief?" I yelled over the buzz of all the frantic people. For a moment, my heart stopped in fear, worrying that Eames had gotten into a tussle with Cobb. Cobb was not slow-witted, but he didn't have the best temper. If Eames had said anything to set him off, which he most likely did, Cobb would go for his throat. Honestly, Eames looked ten times stronger than Cobb and I combined.

"People move!" I yelled and finally made my way to the holding tank. I was met with a gruesome sight. The four mangled bodies of the guards lay in a bloody heap on the concrete floor. "He did all this?" I choked back a gasp and turned to see Ariadne who had also pushed her way through the crowds and stood next to me, her mouth open in shock.

Cobb was leaning over one of the guards who lay in the cell, fumbling with the nametag. "Officer Ryan," he straightened up and met my eyes. "Stabbed in the back of the head… How the hell did he get out of his cuffs? I had him locked tight when I threw him in here," Cobb shook his head and rubbed his eyes in distress.

"Cobb..." I said softly, approaching him. I knew I had to choose my words wisely, so as not to set Cobb off. He had just lost the man who held information regarding his abducted wife, and felt responsible for it all. "Dom,"

Cobb's head snapped up at the mention of his first name. His expression looked dangerously calm for the current situation he was in "You and I are leaving right now. We're going to find that goddamn son of a bitch,"

I nodded, turned and followed him through the bustling crowds of paramedics, and forensics.

In a matter of minutes, we were in Cobb's car, leading a long line of police cars out of the Police Department lot and into the warm Los Angeles night.

"How the hell are we going to find this man?" I asked Cobb, who was adding numbers to the speedometer a _little_ too generously as we sped down South Main Street, dodging through the crowds of late night traffic. Cobb made a turn so sharp, I nearly fell out of the open window.

"I made a county-wide call!" Cobb barked and ran the car onto the curb of 8th street, passing the lines of cars.

"Jesus, Christ Cobb, _slow down!_" I yelled as people dodged out of the way of the barreling police car. Cobb didn't ease his foot off the accelerator even a bit.

"He knows where she is, Arthur," Cobb finally spoke after a few minutes of strained silence.

"I know," I swallowed ad scanned the streets for the Brit. "But what I still don't understand is why he kidnapped her."

"He obviously wants to gain some sort of leverage over me," Cobb swallowed thickly, "What for, I don't know. I guess we will find out soon enough."

"Cobb stop!" I yelled, jerking forward when he slammed on the brakes.

"What is it?" Cobb leaned over to where I was staring.

"Look at that van," I pointed out a white windowless van, which was parked down an empty alley perpendicular to where we had stopped.

Cobb immediately put the car into park, jumped out, and whipped out his gun. I did the same, making sure to turn around and see if we were being watched and this was somehow a trap.

Cobb tried the side handle of the van. It was locked.

"Police, open up!" he yelled, both of our guns pointed at the van.

After a few seconds of silence, Cobb held out a hand, motioning for me to take a few steps back. I kept my gun pointed at the van as Cobb aimed downwards and blew the handle off the van with his 9mm.

My heart pumped more quickly in anticipation as Cobb nudged the door open with his foot, revealing complete darkness. My wild imagination pictured all sorts of horrors that could possibly spill forth from the dark recesses as Cobb fumbled for his flashlight and clicked the light on. I realized I had been holding my breath.

"Look," Cobb said quietly as he leaned forward and shone the flashlight over a wrinkled piece of clothing. I heard his voice get caught in his throat.

"Cobb, what the hell is that?" I took a step closer, pulling my gun back, but keeping my finger on the trigger.

Cobb answered me with another choked gasp, and his fingers grazed the purple fabric before he picked it up. I squinted, trying to see what the article of clothing was. It appeared to be a wrinkled and torn-in-several places dark purple shirt. There were a few dark spots that I was almost positive were bloodstains.

"Mal…" Cobb whispered, his voice quavering.

"Oh God," I spoke quietly.

Cobb let out a sob and buried his face in the soft cloth. He inhaled and dropped his arm, the look of despair being replaced with one of pure rage. "We are finding that fucking son of a bitch if it's the _last thing I do!" _Cobb stormed past me and returned to the cop car. "Come on, we need to regroup. He still has her alive somewhere, I know it. He's just tormenting me."

"Cobb, we need to find out what he wants," I returned my gun to it's holster and followed the seething man back to the car, slamming the door shut as he started the engine.

"Yes, Arthur, and that's where I need you." Cobb brought the car back up to speed and made an immediate u-turn back to the station. "You've always been good with digging up information. You and the Detective. Plus… Eames seemed to take an interest in you."

My muscles immediately tensed and I rigidly turned my head to look at Cobb who kept his eyes on the road. "How did you-?"

"I watched the tape of you interrogating him before he broke out." Cobb answered. "You can't deny it Arthur. The way he leaned in to you, the way he spoke. He seemed fascinated. And that's very dangerous. You never want a criminal taking interest in you, because most of them aren't mentally stable whatsoever. I want you to be extra cautious tonight, do you hear me?"

I found myself rolling my eyes, "Really Cobb? I'd prefer it if you treated me more like a grown man, and not some amateur."

"Arthur, I'm just giving you fair warning. You know, as your friend, that I care about you. And when I see a criminal eyeing you like a dog eyeing a hunk of meat, I get very worried. I can't help it. It's just my fatherly instincts." Cobb sighed and rubbed his eyes. "I still can't believe that this is actually happening. My wife…" I heard his voice crack and a pang of guilt echoed through my heart. I understood why Cobb was being overprotective. His wife is already in serious danger, and he doesn't want the same to happen to me.

We rode back to the station in silence, Cobb fidgeting the entire way. When we arrived, Cobb reluctantly got out of the car, and turned to me when I followed. "Goodnight Deputy," he addressed me as he locked the car and strolled back to the station.

"Wait I was planning on staying… You know, to do some work with the Detective," I called out to him.

"Arthur…" he turned over his shoulder. "Go get some sleep. The next couple of days will be hectic enough. I'll hold down the fort."

I felt guilty leaving Cobb alone, especially after all the emotional distress he was going through. If I headed back to my apartment, I would feel like I was missing out on helping my friend. But if Cobb insisted… "I have to get a few things from the office." I followed Cobb into the station. "Then I'll hit the sack,"

"Goodnight then," Cobb shook my hand and nodded, "You'll need it,"

After watching the man meander tiredly back to the holding tank to receive info on the breakout, I turned and headed back to the office that Cobb and I shared. It was relatively large, with couches, bookshelves and potted plants. I skimmed my hand over my wooden desk, shuffling through papers to find where I had placed the copy of William Eames' file, when a thought occurred to me.

Had there been a report of Eames actually leaving the station? Maybe that's just what everyone had assumed. But Eames seemed like the chap who was always one step ahead… so if it was expected that he would flee the station, wouldn't it make logical sense to say that he never left? That he could still possibly be here-

My thoughts were interrupted when I heard a soft _bump, _dangerously close to me. My hand flew to my holster, and before I could draw, I heard the _click_ of a gun being cocked, and the cool metal being pressed to the back of my neck.

It was silent for a moment before I spoke calmly, "How did you do it?"

There was a rustle, a soft chuckle, and then warm breath against my ear. "Do what darling? Manage to dazzle you with my dashing good looks and charm?"

My heart leaped into my mouth. _Oh God Cobb was right._ Eames clearly took some sort of weird interest in me… but why? I always, _always_ managed to keep my emotions and work completely separate. Perhaps he thought that he could be the one person to change that. Well he was kidding himself if he thought I would break this easily. I've been threatened at gunpoint plenty of times.

I felt my entire body stiffen when his warm hand slid under the back of my jacket. "What the hell are you doing?" I growled through clenched teeth.

"Shhh, relax." He chuckled before he undid the holster around my waist and slid it down on the desk. "Can't have you within reach of a gun, now, can we?"

I swallowed hard and my fingers twitched, feeling totally vulnerable and exposed. I had never been in a situation like this, where I was being threatened on my own turf. It felt terribly unnerving and made me want to dry heave.

Eames' hand rested on my hip, and slowly pulled me around until I was facing him, the gun remaining locked against my throat. "Do I scare you, Deputy?" he asked curiously, his head cocking to the side like an innocent puppy. He took a step forward, making me stumble backwards against the edge of my desk.

"You're not as intimidating as you think," I barely managed to get out through my tightly clenched jaw.

"Oh really?" he raised his eyebrows and laughed. It was deep and rumbling, and I could feel the vibrations of his chest against mine. I squinted through the dim light, trying to read his facial expression.

"What do you fear, Arthur?" he asked, pressing the gun harder into my throat.

I swallowed again, bringing my hands against the desk behind me, and steadying my body so I wouldn't lose my balance. Even though he hadn't made any sudden movements, it seemed like his body was getting closer and closer to mine.

"Answer me," Eames said more firmly, his eyebrow arching in seriousness.

"Lots of things." I answered stiffly, "However in a situation like this, I don't find an arrogant, pretentious, bastard particularly fearful."

Eames laughed. "You're simply adorable."

I cocked my eyebrow and waited for him to finish. "Where's Mal Cobb? The Chief and I found a shirt of hers in the back of an abandoned van."

"Oh really?" Eames shifted his grip on the handgun. "What makes you think I had anything to do with that?"

"Goddammit, Eames, we _know_ you're behind her abduction!" I growled through clenched teeth. When would this man finally admit it? "Stop trying to shift the blame. There's no one else who would have a reason for abducting her!"

He simply laughed and shook his head, "And what reason is that?"

"You tell me," I narrowed my eyes.

Eames didn't say anything. He simply lowered the gun and slid it into the inside of his jacket pocket. I watched his movements like a hawk, suspicious as to why he was lowering his defense. My hand reached behind me and fumbled for my holster. Eames noticed my movements and his hands reached out behind me, clasping my hands each of his. I let out a frustrated growl as he pressed his body flush against mine and grasped my hands in his warm grip, rendering me defenseless.

"Keep struggling, darling it's really quite adorable. Plus it's running down your energy." Eames smiled lazily, as if he was putting in no effort whatsoever to keep me immobile.

It was apparent that he was much larger than me, and I had never been considered muscular, or built. I was always _the_ small, skinny kid in K-12. So it came to no surprise that my attempts to wriggle out of his grasp were futile, but goddammit, I couldn't just give him what he wanted.

"Darling I don't have all night to sit here and watch you struggle. So will you calm down and let me talk to you?" Eames was growing impatient.

I stopped for a moment, breathing hard and fast, waiting for him to speak.

"I didn't stay here to threaten you, or seek revenge or anything," Eames explained calmly. This didn't lessen the tension in between my eyebrows _at all._ I had learned throughout my entire criminal defense career to never trust anyone. "I came to talk to you…" Eames continued, "about a deal."

My ears perked up, and I could feel the dread clenching in my chest. Making a deal with a criminal like Eames is worse than making a deal with the devil himself.

"Have you ever heard of profession in dream work?" Eames said, a little quieter.

My heart froze, and I felt my jaw clench involuntarily in shock. Of course I have heard of dream work. I used to be a professional.

"I know about your… rather _dark_ past, Deputy," Eames leaned in closer, his warm breath fanning my face. It reeked of cigarettes and peppermint presenting a sickly-sweet, yet bitter aroma. "And I am going to make an offer that I am pretty sure you simply won't be able to refuse."

No, no, no, nonononono this is _bad._ Awful. Disastrous. My thoughts were running through my head at a million miles an hour. If a criminal as nasty as William Eames knew about my past, not to mention extremely illegal profession, there's no telling what sort of blackmail he's cooked up in that messed up head of his.

"I am willing to give the location of Mallory Cobb, if you agree to be my Point Man for a very big and important upcoming job." Eames spoke slowly, giving me time to process the statement.

My heart dropped all the way into my feet, and I felt my head spinning. "No, no, no," I murmured, screwing my eyes shut and shaking my head. This was _not_ happening. I had severely underestimated the magnitude of the deal that Eames would propose to me. Nothing was worse than what he had just told me. My throat clenched up in panic as realization hit me: It wasn't Cobb that Eames wanted to gain leverage over in kidnapping Mallory, it was me. Eames is blackmailing me.

"Come on, its not that big of request. I know how involved you used to be in profession, and I know that you were a damn good Point Man." Eames took my chin on his forefinger and pulled my face up to look him in the eye.

"Are you _insane_?" I hissed and wrenched my face out of his grasp. "How the hell did you find that out?"

"I have my sources," Eames grinned and then grew serious. "So how does it sound? Simple request, right? You do this job for me, and Mrs. Cobb will be in the kitchen once more, making Mr. C.O.P. Dominic Cobb his dinner and drinks once again. All will be fine and dandy."

"And what if I refuse?" I asked fearfully.

Eames face fell, "Well first, not only will our dear Chief of Police find out about our Deputy's dark and clandestine past, but the whole news media… Your career will be ended." His eyes grew dark, "And I'm afraid Mrs. Cobb will also never see the light of day, again. Then the lovely Cobb children will join her. Mr. Cobb will come him every day to an empty house with no children, no wife, and a so-called "best friend" in jail for his criminal past."

My vision grew more and more blurred with every sentence, my heart clenching in despair. "No," I shook my head. I could feel my eyes stinging with bitter tears, "_Bastard!"_ I finally wrenched my hands out of his grip and pushed Eames off of me with both palms. "I can't believe-" I tried to form full sentences, but the image of what Eames has just suggested was too much emotional stress.

"Believe it, love," Eames said darkly, a ghost of a smirk gracing his full lips. "So do we have a deal?" He stuck out his hand, "or no?"

I stared at his hand for a good twenty seconds, running thoughts through my head. Accepting the job would mean not only lying to Cobb, but also delving back into a profession that I had long ago given up in order to pursue an honest life. But I honestly had no choice. Refusing would result in the ending of my career, and my freedom, but also would end the lives of Cobb's family. I could never, in a million years let myself do that.

"Deal," I said, defeated, and shook Eames' waiting hand once. He didn't release mine, when I attempted to pull away; instead, he yanked me forward against his chest and brought his mouth against my ear.

"Good, darling," He breathed out and pushed me against the desk again. I whimpered and tried to push him off, but he was too heavy. "I look forward to working with you."

He briefly brushed his lips down my jaw and nipped my exposed neck, earning a barely audible gasp from my lips. I finally gathered my strength and pushed him off of me with all the force I could muster. My mouth remained open in shock, trying to erase the feeling of Eames' soft, slightly moist lips against my skin. The fact that it actually felt _good_ scared me more than words could express.

He smirked as he released my hand and took a few steps back. "I will contact you soon. But remember," he held up a finger in warning. "I'll be watching you Arthur. Any wrong moves, and Mal's body will appear on Cobb's doorstep. Understand?"

I glared maliciously, and nodded once, willing him to leave the office before I beat the bloody shit out of him.

"Goodnight, dear," he smirked and walked around the desk, disappearing into the shadows. I listened until I heard the soft _click_ of the door shutting, before I let out a loud sob and whirled around, slamming my fist into the desk.

How the hell was I going to do this? How in the hell?

_It started from your arms, it is the catalyst_

_Although the chemical, it burns, there is nothing but this_

_It's the purest element but it's so volatile_

_An equation heaven sent, a drug for angels_

Disclaimer: I don't own Inception. All rights reserved to Warner Brothers.

**A/N: **


	3. Chapter 3

**Warnings: Graphic sexuality, language, and drug/alcohol use**

_I'm gonna be released from behind these lies_

_I don't care whether I live or die_

_And I'm losing blind, I'm gonna leave my bones_

_And I don't want you to leave me cold_

Chapter 3: Leave My Body

_**Eames**_

I had a slight spring in my step as I walked from Arthur's office, sneaking through the back abandoned hall of the station. My skin tingled, still remembering the feeling of the smaller man's smooth skin under my fingertips. I smirked at the horrified expression he had given me after I revealed what I had found out about his dark past.

It wasn't hard, in fact, my employer had mentioned that he knew of a Point Man who had previously worked for him, before becoming a high-ranking police officer in Los Angeles. My interest peaked, as I needed a Point Man, a very good one, since I had no room to mess up my upcoming job.

When I unearthed information on Arthur Davis, I learned three main things: Police Deputy, graduate of Berkeley, and single. I had been intrigued, that a man in his prime was stuck in such a high-ranked job, with no mention of a wife, or even a girlfriend.

After watching grainy footage and examining blurred photos, I decided that this would be my Point Man. But how would I get him to do this job? Obviously, there was no way this straight-laced man of the law would slip back into an illegal profession, and for a criminal like me, nonetheless, so that left: blackmail!

But how was I to blackmail a man who had no significant other, no living immediate family members, and not a lot of monetary incentives? That left: close personal friends. Upon doing some deeper digging and research, I found out that both Dominic Cobb, who happened to be the Chief of Police of Los Angeles, and Arthur both graduated from Berkeley. Cobb was two years Arthur's senior, but there was still a high chance that these two had a connection. But I couldn't rely on hunches.

To Los Angeles, it was. Being a master of forgery and flawless impersonation, I wheedled my way into the LAPD, with significant changes to my physical appearance (colored contacts, hair dye, growth of facial hair, plaster masks etc.) as a reporter, or forensics expert or something… anyway, I was able to observe Cobb and Arthur firsthand. At first, I was convinced that the two held no personal connection, they were so stoic. But my thoughts changed the second that I overheard Cobb invite Arthur over to "see Mal and the kids."

Right then, my interest was peaked. Upon closer inspection, I was able to realize that these two men were well-acquainted, if not close friends. I had one of my technical experts bug the office that Cobb and Arthur shared, and I was able to listen in on some of their close and intimate conversations. I had hit the jackpot.

Now I had leverage over the Point Man. Obviously, I wouldn't be able to kidnap the Chief of Police, that would require months and months of careful planning, hiring, and large sums of money because of high security issues, none of which I had at the moment. All of my income from robbing banks and such had been squandered away in Mombasa in one of my favorite casinos, and the job was scheduled for next month.

I hated dealing with children, and would get a headache if I abducted sweet little James or Phillipa, so I opted for Cobb's innocent and doe-eyed wife, Mallory Cobb.

My pace quickened when I heard the hum of voices behind me, but was relieved to find out that they were heading in the opposite direction. Removing the key ring I had stolen from the young officer in the lobby, I examined the key and read the number engraved on the body of the car key.

Looking up, I slipped out the back exit, making sure no security cameras had caught me. I quickly looked around the full lot of police cars in the dark night, and spotted the corresponding number on the key.

My gut twisted in anticipation as I opened the door and slid the key into the ignition. The engine roared to life, and I hurriedly backed out of the space and exited the lot in a non-conspicuous manner. I had no doubt that they had already spotted me leaving on the security camera in the parking lot, and I stepped on the gas and sped down Main Street, pulling onto the freeway.

I pulled out my retrieved phone from my pocket, and flipped it open, dialing a memorized number, and waiting for it to ring.

"Boss?" answered a muffled voice on the other end.

"Do you have the van ready?" I asked, weaving in between cars and dodging traffic.

"Yeah. Where are you?"

"About ten minutes away," I answered calmly, shutting the phone and slipping it into the inside pocket of my jacket.

My thoughts hummed with images of Arthur's face, inches from mine, looking shocked, looked furious, looking teary-eyed… I shut my eyes and silently scolded myself. No, no, no! Don't start feeling guilty for blackmailing Arthur. You can't start feeling anything for him. He's my Point Man now.

At most, the only thing I felt for Arthur was lust. My thoughts turned dirty and I imagining taking Arthur, whining, no _begging_ me to fuck him senseless…

I chuckled, "Yeah right, that will be the day." I told myself not to fantasize about situations that would never, ever happen in a million years.

My destination came into view: Dodger Stadium. I pulled around to the back lot and abandoned the police car, not bothering to remove the keys or turn off the engine. I was on a deadline. I spotted the windowless white van parked about thirty feet from where I had stopped. Almost as if it had sensed my presence, the side door slid open.

"Hey boss, how was it?" Billy, my right-hand-man, and the only man I have ever kept for all my jobs. He was the closest thing I had to a friend. I noticed Billy's Irish accent was thicker than usual, which usually only happened when he had been drinking.

"Splendid," I smiled as I approached him; my suspicion confirmed when I reached a two foot radius of the man who reeked of whiskey. "Bill, have you been drinking?" I turned my nose up at the bottle of empty Jack Daniels, which Billy desperately tried to shove under one of the stained, gray seats.

"Oh, Dan and I just got a lil' bored while we were waiting," the younger, drunken man chuckled, pushing a lock of dark brown hair from his green eyes. "But he's fine, don't worry."

"Come on, boss!" Dan, one of my recently hired drivers called from the front seat.

"Daniel, are you sober?" I asked, feeling like a parent interrogating his teenage sons.

"Hey, you know I hate being called by my full name," Dan scowled and started the van. "and yeah, I didn't have a drop, I swear."

"Then let's go," I said hurriedly, rushing Billy back into the van, and sliding the door shut. "Frankly, I don't give a flying fuck as to if you men drink, but don't let it happen _ever again _on a job. Especially one as important as this," I glared at Billy. "And since it's, you Bill, I won't do anything. But you know, if it were another one of my men I had just hired for this job, then you would be lying back in the Dodger Stadium parking lot with your brains leaking out your ears, do you understand me?"

"Uh huh!" Bill nodded, looking worried, his eyes wide in fear. "It won't happen again boss, I swear."

"Whatever," I rolled my eyes and clapped him on the back. "So everything is in place. The Deputy is in, and now we're going to go and set up a place where I can safely train him once we go and visit Mrs. Cobb, whom I trust is still safe?" I raised an eyebrow and looked at Billy inquisitively.

"Of course," Billy grinned drunkenly.

"I got word from Arthur that her _shirt_ was found in the back of one of our vans… what's that about?" I glared.

"Oh, Stan probably forgot to clear out the back." Dan explained, keeping his eyes on the road and pulling onto the freeway.

"No, I mean why in the hell are you disrobing her?" I smacked Dan upside the head. Sometimes I really did feel like a father dealing with a bunch of irresponsible teenagers.

"I didn't!" Dan held up a palm defensively, "the boys were probably just having fun with her."

"Jesus Christ," I rubbed my eyes with my fingertips. "I swear, if she gets any diseases from those men…"

"No, of course not!" Dan interrupted me, "I told them what you would do if they threw their hot dogs down her hallway… they're more scared of you than anything else. It's assured that she won't be touched."

"Good," I sighed, not easing the knot of tension forming in my chest. I wasn't exactly concerned about the morality of Mrs. Cobb getting violated by my men; I was more concerned of upholding my promise to Arthur, that Mal would be returned safe and sound to her dear husband if he completed the job. I may be a scoundrel and a criminal, but I was sure as hell a man of my word.

"I'm gonna get some shut eye until we get there okay?" I sighed, realizing how tired I really was. "It's been almost 24 hours since I slept."

"You got it, boss," Billy smiled lazily, and patted the side of my head, similarly to what a human would do to a pet dog.

I shook my head at the drunken man and shifted to the very back seat of the van, stretching my long legs out halfway before lowering my head, and falling asleep almost instantly to the swaying motion of the moving van.

_My eyes fluttered open, and I was standing in the holding tank of the LA Police Department. My wrists were handcuffed together behind my back, and looped in between the bars of the cell behind me. I faced the open door of the cell._

_I felt a sense of dread wash over me as a large dark form entered the room and approached me through the open cell door. I had an inexplicable fear that the dark form was something terrible, so I screwed my eyes shut. The slow cautious footsteps grew louder and louder, approaching me at a steady pace._

_I dared to open my eyes a little when the footsteps stopped, and was surprised to find myself staring into a pair of warm chocolate brown eyes, illuminated by the moonlight shining through the window. The eyes blinked, and pulled back, and I realized that it was Arthur who had been standing before me, his face inches from mine._

_He said nothing, simply staring into my eyes contemplatively, as if he were deciding my fate. The tension that had been forming in between my eyebrows eased and I pulled my lips up into a smile._

"_Hello, darling," I wanted to reach out and touch Arthur, but I remembered that I was bound by the cuffs.._

_Arthur laughed when he noticed my struggle, and said in a lust-filled voice, "You said I could cuff you anytime, Mr. Eames. I have to admit, I rather like seeing you in the submissive position."_

_Yeah, this was most definitely a dream. But hell, why not enjoy a fantasy that I knew would never happen in real life?_

_I returned the grin, feeling my skin start to tingle in anticipation._

_Arthur tilted his head curiously and lifted a hand, splaying it tentatively across my clothed chest. I leaned into his touch, closing my eyes at the warm contact._

"_So, Deputy," I opened my eyes and saw that I had caught Arthur's attention. "Are you going to punish me for my crimes?"_

"_Of course," a suggestive smirk crossed his face, and Arthur took a few steps forward, pressing his lean body against mine. I groaned at the contact. "You need to be punished for all the terrible…" his hand moved down to my ribcage, "horrible," his hand moved down to my stomach, "naughty," his hand rested on my belt buckle, "things you've done,"_

_I felt myself grow hard in anticipation, letting out a sinful moan when he finally cupped me over my trousers._

_He chuckled darkly and, with his other hand moved to undo my belt buckle. I desperately pulled at the handcuffs, wanting to help him remove the clothing, or touch his face, or stroke his hair. "Please," I moaned, "Take the cuffs off,"_

_Arthur tsked and moved to press his lips against my ear. "Can't, darling. You're my prisoner."_

_I shuddered from the feeling of his warm breath on my sensitive spot, and let out a stifled yelp when he took an earlobe between his teeth and bit._

_His hands were fumbling frantically with my belt buckle now, finally ridding me of the blasted thing, and working on my zipper._

"_Arthur," I moaned as he bit my neck hard, drawing blood to the surface of my skin, and then sucking. To bad I wouldn't be able to see what kind of bruises those left when I woke up._

_My zipper was down, and he was yanking down my pants and boxers to reveal my throbbing erection, anticipating his touch. Arthur finally removed his mouth from my neck, and trailed kisses down the front of my chest, unbuttoning each button of my shirt swiftly, and planting hot kisses on the flesh underneath._

_I said his name again frantically, as if it were necessary to my survival, and tried to form words that would beg him to give me what I needed. "Please… don't…. don't stop…"_

_I heard him chuckle darkly. If my wrists were free, I would reach out and shove myself into his hot mouth. He was on his knees now, looking at my hard cock hungrily, licking his lips in anticipation._

_I closed my eyes, feeling his breath get closer and closer… until-_

"_EAMES WAKE UP, WE'RE HERE!"_

"EAMES!" Bill's drunken Irish drawl filled my ears and I bolted upright in the back seat of the van, banging my head on the ceiling and noticing my hard erection throb in between my legs.

"Ugh," I groaned in pain, placing a hand over my crotch and leaning forward to ease the pulsing need, as well as the headache forming in my temples.

"What's wrong, boss? Have a bad dream?" Billy leaned over the seat and patted my head affectionately.

"No," I said, my voice muffled through my legs, "It was a very… _happy_ dream,"

There was a pause before Billy busted out laughing above me, making me want to punch the young immature man in the face. "'ey Danny, boss needs a cold shower Ay-sap!"

"Shut up, you right git," I muttered through clenched teeth as I sat up and exhaled slowly, trying to ease the pressure by rubbing my need with my hand through my pants. All I could picture was Arthur's lust-filled face before my cock, getting ready to suck me dry…

I moaned again, pulling myself up and stumbling from the van, followed by Dan and a hysterical Billy.

"Hey boss, there's a bathroom over there, if you need." Dan pointed me towards an old smaller building that stood next to the abandoned warehouse we were heading towards.

"Right," I walked awkwardly over to the door and prepared to kick open the weathered door. "Meet you inside boys."

I heard Billy and Dan snicker, and rolled my eyes. Thankfully, I hadn't been shouting Arthur's name in my sleep. It would be terrible if my men knew that I was lusting after our target.

Once inside, I released myself from the confinements of my trousers and licked my hand, I wrapped my slick fingers around my cock and jerked, picturing that it was Arthur's hot slick mouth over my pulsating need. After finishing, I cleaned myself with a paper towel that was still somehow left in the dispenser, and jogged energetically back to the warehouse. It was time to visit the Missus.

A frustrated scream rang through my ears the moment I stepped into the warehouse, and I frantically looked over to see Mal Cobb being dragged in by two of my larger, more gruff looking men. Her head whirled around, and her crazy bloodshot eyes met mine and she let out a sob of rage. Much to my relief, she had on all her original clothing; save for the ratty torn white beater that I assumed one of my men had given her out of pity.

I sighed and put on a smile, stepping forward to talk to the lady. She desperately yelped and tried to scramble away as I approached her, but the two men holding her arms were firm.

"There, there, darling, calm down. I'm not going to hurt you." I said in my most soothing voice, reaching out and stroking her short black ringlets.

She whimpered and screwed her eyes shut, probably silently willing that she would be saved. Too bad for her, she wouldn't be leaving for another two weeks, at least.

"Darling, listen to me," I tried to calm her down, but she remained tense and wound up underneath my touch, her pretty mouth twisted downwards in fear, but her eyes filled with silent rage. "I'm not going to hurt you. But I will tell you one thing. Tomorrow, you'll get to see Arthur." I had assumed that this would brighten her sullen mood even a bit, but instead a look of terror crossed her face.

"No!" she yelled and bucked up, nearly kneeing me in the jaw. Luckily, I had jumped up in surprise and watched as she frantically kicked. "You will _not _hurt Arthur!" she frantically shook her head.

"No, of course not," I assured her. "Arthur's coming for a little visit, alright? Nobody's going to hurt him. I promise you."

She didn't look convinced. Instead, she blew a lock of hair from her face and snarled, "I wouldn't trust you as far as I could throw you!"

"I don't expect you to," I grinned and stood up. "Now I know you've probably been bored just sitting here all day… so tonight we are moving."

"We moved last night!" Mal frowned and narrowed her eyes, "You coward…. Whatever reason you have me here for is probably ridiculous and criminal, and-and-"

I held out a finger to silence her before I leaned in, my face inches from hers and spoke, "Goodnight Mrs. Cobb,"

Her eyes widened in shock before I motioned to one of my men standing behind her. Before she could whirl around in shock, the man placed a prepared cloth dipped in chloroform over her mouth. She gasped and struggled for a few moments before her eyes rolled back and she slumped forward.

I stared at her beautiful slumped form for a fleeting moment before I stood up and snapped my fingers. "To the vans. Let's go. Billy, we're bringing her to that place in San Bernadino."

Billy giggled and shrugged. Shit, I had forgotten he was drunk off his ass.

"Dan?" I sighed, turning to the blonde man.

He nodded and pulled Mal up over his shoulder, motioning for the other men to follow. Of course, when I said "San Bernadino", that was code for Victorville. You could never be too careful.

"We're going to go prepare the place. It will probably take a few days to a week, but I'm aiming for two days… After that, I'm driving back to L.A. to get Arthur, and then training will commence." I quickly went over the plan as I followed Dan and the large group of my loyal men to the row of white vans.

"Are you gonna get some sleep?" Dan asked me, almost sounding concerned. I turned and looked at the worry line on his forehead. I felt a pang of warmth for the young man. He had just turned twenty-three when he decided to beg me for a job after dropping out of college and getting dumped by his long-time girlfriend. I remember his interview specifically, because he struck such an emotional nerve in me.

"I'll be fine, Daniel. Thank you," I said, even though I knew he hated being called by his full name. I preferred it.

Instead of scowling at my use of the name, he grinned widely and chuckled, "Can't wait to see Arthur? I'm certainly curious to see this man who made you groan in your sleep and gave you a wet dream."

My face immediately blushed a scarlet red, and my mouth dropped open, too shocked to ay anything. I _was_ moaning Arthur's name! I cringed when Dan only laughed harder at my embarrassment and was ready to yell at the youth, but he had already slipped into the nearest van with Mal.

I turned and faced the empty lot before me, looking into the black sky littered with gleaming stars. My thoughts were still filled with a certain Police Deputy, and how badly I wanted to simply drive back to Los Angeles and steal him away to London instead of training him for a job that I had blackmailed him into…

_Soon_… I thought as I turned and slipped into the van and slid the door shut behind me.

_I don't need a husband, I don't need a wife_

_And I don't need the day, I don't need the knife_

_And I don't need the birds let them fly away_

_And I don't want the crowds, they never seem to stay_

Disclaimer: I don't own Inception. All rights reserved to Warner Brothers.

**A/N:**


	4. Chapter 4

**Warnings: Language, brief sexuality, and drug references**

_I wish to remain nameless_

_And live without shame_

'_cause what's in a name?_

_I still remain the same_

X-X-X-X-X

Chapter 4: Remain Nameless

_**Arthur**_

After getting back to my apartment after the run-in with Eames, I was a nervous wreck. Every little bump and creak made me jump and reach for my gun. I had never felt so on edge about anything. Normally, I was calm, collected, and ready to react to anything. In this case, Eames had the upper hand, and I sure as hell had never been on the other side of the situation. I hated it.

The next couple of days were uneventful, and went pretty much like this: I went to the station for work, avoiding Cobb at any and all possibility, and sneaking files from the records office to do research with Ariadne. Although it felt pointless since I already knew what Eames wanted, I had to carry out what Cobb had told me to do lest he get suspicious.

I was telling myself to calm down, that Cobb would never suspect anything, and there's no way he would find out about the deal I made with Eames.

I was still stumped about how Eames had found out that I had formerly worked as a Point Man, seeing as I had made sure I erased every trace possible, and paid off every client to keep quiet. Nonetheless, I still remembered everything about work, and I knew that I would have no problem jumping back into the field.

The third night after I had made the deal with Eames, I dreamed for the first time in ten years. It wasn't much, just a swirl of colors and steady rhythmic beats, like a heartbeat. When I woke, I was on the couch in the living room of my apartment.

On the fourth day, I went to work to find Cobb hunting me down like a lion hunting it's prey.

"Arthur!" He yelled and made a beeline for me the second I stepped into the station lobby.

"_Shit_," I muttered under my breath and forced myself to straighten up and open my heavy eyelids all the way.

"Jesus H. Christ, you look like shit. Have you slept at all in the last couple of days?" Cobb looked me up and down, and then motioned for me to follow him before I could answer.

I rolled my eyes and followed the blonde man through the crowded station and into our shared office.

"Sit down, Deputy," Cobb said calmly.

I swallowed warily and slowly lowered myself into the seat that sat across Cobb's desk. He didn't sound suspicious or upset.

"I haven't gotten the chance to tell you, since you've disappeared over the last couple of days, but we got a lead on to where Eames might be," Cobb smiled, showing no teeth, and laced his fingers together.

"Where?" I asked.

"The station down in Glendora contacted me and said they spotted a group of suspicious vehicles speeding down the 15… They must be headed to San Bernardino." Cobb sounded hopeful. "They followed the vehicles and was able to identify one of the drivers as one of Eames' men."

"Well are you going down there?" I asked nervously.

"Yes." He said assuredly, "We already know he's not in L.A. anymore, so it's time to move out. I called station 117 in San Bernardino, and they're going to keep a look out. I want you to stay here and take charge. You understand?"

"But, sir, I-" I tried to explain that I needed to go with him without revealing that I knew that Eames was coming to get me, but I had no idea when.

"No, Arthur I know you probably want to come for back-up, but I need you to stay here and keep everyone in order. Ariadne is too busy with everything else; I couldn't ask her to do it. And Nash just isn't smart enough to handle that much power. I _need_ you to stay here, Arthur. Please." Cobb's eyes begged me silently, even though I had no say in the matter.

"Okay. I'll stay," I sighed, defeated. I knew that once Cobb was gone to the other county, Eames would come for me. It was inevitable. Like some sort of sick, twisted fate. Dear God, what did I ever do to deserve this?

"I'm leaving in an hour, just go and get reports from everyone. Oh and _keep your phone on you_. I'll update you on everything." Cobb stood up and frantically exited the office, probably to go prepare for the trip.

O-O-O-O-O

After collecting reports from every division of the station for an hour, I headed back to my office, shaking my head and muttering curse words under my breath.

It wasn't until I spotted the open bottle of whiskey sitting on my desk when I entered the room that I realized that someone was behind me.

The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end as I heard the door slam shut, and the unmistakable _click_ of a lock.

"Hello, darling" a throaty, familiar voice said behind me.

I turned slowly, plastering a look of absolute hatred across my face as my glare fell upon none other, than William Eames.

The handsome British man was dressed horridly in a paisley salmon collared shirt tucked into a pair of charcoal tweed trousers. I nearly vomited as his choice of wardrobe.

"You finally returned," Eames smirked and passed my frozen form, sitting behind my desk. "Have a seat won't you? I'll pour you a drink." He picked up the bottle of alcohol and poured an inch of caramel colored liquid into a glass tumbler.

I stayed where I was, sure that there was no way in _hell_ I would ever sit and have a drink with this man– no–this _criminal_.

Eames noticed my hesitance and looked up, meeting my eyes. "What's the matter, Deputy?"

"What are you doing here?" I arched an eyebrow.

"I've come to get you, pet," he said pleasantly and sipped his drink, hissing at the taste.

"That doesn't give you the right to intrude my office," I took a step forward, my words dripping with venom. It took every ounce of control in my body not to rip the man's trachea from his throat.

"Well how else would I find you?" Eames leaned back, as if it were his own chair that he was sitting in.

"I don't know!" I snapped, "But I don't want you in here! This is my office, and there is confidential information in here, that you don't need to know about!"

"Ah, I see," he examined the glass, swirling the liquid around lazily. "So would you rather I had stopped by your apartment?"

"No!" I snapped again, "I would rather you find someone else to be your goddamn Point Man,"

"But you're the best, you see," Eames shook his head. "My employer, the man you will be meeting tonight, recommended that I find you. Apparently, he knew that you had not only done work in the field before, but that you were magnificent at it as well,"

"I gave that up a long time ago. It's illegal, and it's wrong. Messing in people's subconscious's is not only a terrible invasion of privacy, but it also strains them mentally." I felt my temper rising with each word flowing from my mouth, something I couldn't control.

"No offense, love, I know you have a good moral conscious and everything, but do you honestly think I give a damn?" Eames said frankly, "I don't do dream work for the money, or for the popularity. I do it because I'm damn good at it. I chose a life of, ah-" he waved his hand around trying to think of the right word.

"Crime?" I spat bitterly.

"Yes, I suppose," Eames continued, "I chose to be the person I am today. I didn't choose a life of getting buried in student loans, and then sitting in a 7 square-foot cubicle everyday for the rest of my life in order to pay those off. That is _worse_ than prison. And if I ever get arrested and thrown in the slammer, which I won't," he laughed pompously, "I will have absolutely no regrets."

"You are such a pretentious asshole," I growled through clenched teeth. "Find someone else."

"Nope," Eames shook his head, "I've already made my decision. And you've already made the deal. So let's get going!" He stood up and walked towards me.

"Eames," I spoke the man's name for the first time. At this point, I decided that the only tactic I had left was guilt tripping the man with emotion. So I put on my best puppy-dog face and practically whimpered: "I don't want to do this," my voice was laced with pain and fear, and for a second, I saw Eames' face flicker with guilt. But like the time ticking away, the emotion was gone from his face, and he spoke firmly.

"I know." Eames lifted a hand and grasped my upper bicep. "Come on. It's time for your pat-down,"

"What?" my jaw dropped in shock as he yanked me towards the desk. "Let go of me!"

"No can do, Deputy. I can't have my prisoner armed." Eames spun me around, pushing me against the edge of the desk. I groaned in pain as he pushed me forward so I was leaning over the edge of the desk. "Spread 'em," he demanded gently, yet firmly.

"You sick bastard!" I growled through clenched teeth as I felt his feet nudging my legs apart.

"Don't make me do this the hard way, pet," he laid his body over my back and whispered in my ear. My cheeks flushed red at the position that we were in, and hesitantly shuffled my feet so that my legs were further apart.

A choked gasp escaped my lips as he placed his thigh in between my legs and pressed himself against my rear end.

"Don't move. You have the right to remain silent." Eames spoke into my ear. I could hear the amusement in his voice. The stupid bastard was enjoying this. I exhaled, exasperated and let my head fall against the wooden desk with a dull _thud_.

Eames yanked up the back of my jacket and found the back of my holster, unbuckling it slowly, and letting it slide to the floor. I felt his hands linger on my lower back, afraid of what he would do. I tensed up even more when he moved his hands to the sides of my hips, and slid them down dreadfully slow, moving his body in accord. Eames felt every inch of my ankles, deciding he was satisfied that I had no weapons in my socks, and then brought his hands back up slowly on the inside of my legs.

I flinched and tried to wriggle away when his hands moved up to my inner thighs, but thankfully, he stopped and stepped away, letting me get up from the desk.

"Empty your pockets, or I'll do it for you," Eames stared me in the eye.

Hesitantly, I reached into my pockets and fished out my cell phone, my car keys, my wallet, and my badge.

"Thank you, darling," Eames smirked and threw my keys back to me. "Keep these. You're going to drive,"

O-O-O-O-O

We left through the back exit and drove away from the station in my car, with Eames ducked in the back seat, until we hit the freeway.

"Tell me, pet, what made you get into dream work in the first place if you thought it was so bad?" Eames climbed clumsily over the center console of my sedan and slid comfortably into the passenger seat. I gripped the steering wheel, trying to pretend that I wasn't on edge about the fact that there was not only a criminal in my car, but that I was going to help him with an illegal job.

But what choice did I have? I was in no position of leverage, when this criminal not only had knowledge that could destroy my career, but also someone that I cared about.

I chose to ignore his question, and changed the subject, "Mal's not in San Bernardino is she?" I knew from the moment that Cobb had said it, that it was probably a fake lead-on.

"Trying to change the subject, are we?" Eames' asked cockily, seeming ticked off that I was ignoring his questions. "Why are you so sensitive about your past, Deputy?"

"I just don't want to talk about it. Especially with _you_," I snapped bitterly.

Eames laughed, unfazed by my hostility. "It will all come out eventually, Deputy. You may not want to talk about it now, but you don't necessarily have the authority to disobey me. You're unarmed, and totally at my mercy." He smiled as he said this.

I tensed, and clenched my jaw, wanting to say something to prove him wrong, but he was right. I had no weapons, no cell phone, and no choice but to do what he told me to.

"If you told anyone about my past, no one would believe you." I said aloud, even though I knew it wasn't true. I was giving myself a false sense of security, trying to tell myself that the only reason I was going through with this was to save Mal. But it wasn't. I was selfish about keeping my career, and I was honestly terrified of Cobb finding out about my former profession.

"Keep telling yourself that love," Eames snickered, "If you choose to disobey me, then we'll find out if you're right,"

I felt my heart skip a beat in anxiety. The mere thought of behind exposed as a traitor, not only to Cobb and my coworkers, but also to my city, was terrifying. They would rip me to shreds.

"I won't," I lied. There had to be some way to get around this. It wasn't that I wasn't able to perform the task he was demanding of me, it was that I wouldn't be able to live with the guilt of knowing I helped a criminal, while I am in such a high position of the law.

"Turn off here," he pointed to the upcoming exit.

"Dodger Stadium?" I asked, confused.

"Yes, dear," Eames smiled, "My, you pick up on things quickly."

I rolled my eyes at his mocking and pulled off the freeway, driving up the sprawling green hills towards the famous baseball stadium.

"No, you're going to turn in here," Eames pointed to the back parking lot.

"But that's staff only," I said nervously.

"Yes, I know." Eames rolled his eyes, "That's why you will need this," he tossed me my police officer's badge and clumsily crawled into the backseat.

"So what? I can't enter unless I have a warrant or reason to search." I argued.

"Tell them you got a lead-on about a pot deal or something. They won't argue with you," Eames hissed from behind my seat.

"And why are we going in here again?" I asked stubbornly.

"We're meeting _friends_," Eames snapped, starting to sound impatient.

"Then how did they get-" I started to ask.

"For Christ's sake, darling this isn't twenty questions! Just do what I tell you, remember? Or else you'll regret it." Eames' voice got dangerously low towards the end of his second statement.

That was all it took to convince me. Stepping lightly on the gas, I pulled up to the security gate and looked calmly at the intimidating guard. I did a quick once over of the guard. The guard was a tall, older-looking gentleman. He looked very stern.

"Hello, I'm Police Deputy Arthur Davis," I quickly flashed my badge, "I'm sorry to bother you on a Sunday, but we got a report of suspicion on these grounds, and I need to investigate,"

"Where's your warrant, Deputy?" The guard asked, narrowing his eyes.

"I have no need for a warrant if I have probable cause," I tried not to sound like I was lying, but it was hard when there was a criminal sitting behind me, forcing me to lie to another authority figure.

"What is that 'probably cause'?" the guard asked skeptically.

I hesitated. Depending on how this man stood politically, he would either react very well, or very badly. "There was a report from a third party, claiming to witness a marijuana exchange during one of last week's games." I spoke firmly and coherently, picking up on all of the guard's facial expressions. "If I am able to investigate, then it might lead to information regarding a prominent marijuana grower and dealer in this county. We could send him to jail." I was going off purely what the guard seemed to be reacting too.

The man stood with an expression of disdain and for a second, I felt my heart sink to my feet. Then, he raised a hand and pressed a button next to him, lifting the barrier to let me in the lot. "Go ahead, Deputy. I hope you catch that son of a bitch," he nodded respectfully.

Relief washed over me and I nodded and thanked the man. That was exactly the reaction I had been wanting. If there man were pro-legalization, there was no way in hell he would let me in.

"Stupid conservative wanker," Eames muttered as he crawled to the passenger seat again. "But, hell it worked like a charm. Good work, Deputy. That was the first crime you've committed in office." Eames grinned. "How does it feel? You're like me now,"

"What?" I gasped.

"Lying to a security guard, and trespassing." Eames raised an eyebrow.

"I am _not_ a criminal!" I turned and snarled. "Do not _ever_ compare me to scum like you!"

"You say that now, but when you get back into the world of Inception, I'm sure you won't go back to being a law-abiding officer." Eames chuckled darkly. "Oh, turn here."

I slammed on the brakes, causing Eames to jerk forward and almost slam his head against the dashboard. That's what you get for not wearing a seatbelt. However, I was too shocked beyond words to tease him about it.

"_Inception?"_ I said incredulously. "You want me to perform _Inception_?"

"Um, yes," Eames rubbed his neck, looking ticked off. "Why does it matter?"

I shook my head and turned to face the front. "I can't. I'm sorry, I just can't do Inception."

"Why not?" Eames folded his arm across his chest.

"I-I-" I stammered and shook my head. "My last job before I quit dream work involved Inception. It wasn't… I couldn't- " I shook my head again.

"There's no way around it Arthur." Eames said firmly, "What the client wants is what the client gets."

I stared ahead of me at the bleak empty lot, the gray and white and charcoal turning blurry. It wasn't until I felt a hand wipe away a single tear on my face had I realized I was crying.

Eames wiped away the tear with two fingers, causing me to shrink away slightly. I glared at him, silently ordering him to back off. I don't know how he could act so affectionate when he was forcing me to do something against my will.

He stared me in the eye, a sorrowful expression on his face. I sniffed and quickly wiped away the wetness from my eyes, turning forwards again and lifting my foot off the brake. I hated crying. It was the absolute worst thing that I lose control over my emotions, and break down into such a vulnerable state. I couldn't even stand to cry when I'm by myself, let alone in the presence of a man I despised.

"Why won't you tell me?" Eames asked.

"Because I don't want you to know," I snapped. "It's a personal matter. What happened to me in the past won't change your mind either way, because you're so cold-hearted."

Surprisingly, Eames didn't say anything in response. I half-expected him to snap something equally hostile and cruel back at me, but he stared straight ahead, his stoic expression unchanging.

I followed his directions, and finally spotted three white vans ahead of us. My heart rate increased when I saw the cluster of men moseying around, looking almost impatient.

"There's my boys," Eames sat up and pointed. "Park over there,"

I felt my throat go dry as I pulled to the left of the gathering of men and parked the car.

"We're leaving in these vans," Eames explained calmly, collecting his things and unlocking the passenger door. "You're leaving your car here, and we will be going to an undisclosed location for two weeks to start your training and briefing. The day after you finish training, we will fly to the East Coast for the job. Understood? Okay, good. Because that's all I'm telling you. Remember, you're still my prisoner." Eames winked with a grin and opened the door.

"Wait, are there other team members?" I asked, hopeful.

"Yes, two others." Eames nodded his head. "You will be meeting them tomorrow."

"Oh," I looked down, not sounding excited or hopeful at all.

"Come on, Deputy, let's get going," Eames stepped out of the car.

"Wait, one more question!" I called.

"What is it?" He asked impatiently.

"What are you?" I asked out of mere curiosity.

Eames smiled coyly, "What do you think?"

"Are you the Extractor," I guessed.

"Wrong!" Eames smirked and slammed the door shut.

For a moment, I sat in the car, contemplating the little options I had. This decision would change my life forever. Maybe Eames was right, and once I got back into dream work, I wouldn't want to leave. This was my biggest fear. I also feared that once it was over and done with, Cobb would somehow find out about the job.

I sighed and opened the door, stepping out of my little Toyota and locking it.

Eames motioned me over towards the group of ten or so men. "Arthur, this is Bill, my oldest friend."

"Call me Billy," the brown-haired man held out a hand. I detected a slight Irish accent in the man's voice, and shook the man's hand lightly. He looked about the same age as me.

Billy continued "Mr. proper Englishman over here insists on calling everyone by their full names. It drives me up the wall," he laughed and punched Eames in the shoulder.

Eames rolled his eyes, annoyed and turned me to the next young man. "This is Daniel."

"Hey, you can call me Dan or Danny" the young blonde man grinned. He was American. "So you're the infamous Deputy that Liam's been rambling about."

I looked over to see Eames' face blush and his face flashed with anger. "Daniel, first of all, I don't _ramble_, and second, I don't like to be called that." He turned towards me and pointed menacingly. "If you ever call me that I will maim you,"

"What, Liam?" I asked.

"Yes!" Eames snapped.

"Okay, I won't," I shrugged. I was more concerned about the fact that Eames' men had given away that he had a sort of infatuation with me. And even more concerned with the fact that it didn't scare me as much as it should…

Eames introduced me to the rest of his posse and led me to the nearest van. "And you'll be riding in this one. So, let's get going."

I climbed in, half-expecting to be hit over the head with a bat so I would fall unconscious. But instead, I watched Eames remove a small unlabeled vial from his god-awful tweed trousers and unscrew the cap. He looked up and held up the vial. "If you don't mind, darling,"

I rolled my eyes and lay back on the seat so I was in a comfortable position. God knows how long I would be unconscious, since I had no idea where we were heading.

"Wait," I held out a hand stopping Eames. "Are you the Architect?"

Eames leaned in closely, and whispered in my ear. "Wrong." And with that he leaned back and held a handkerchief over his nose.

"Goodnight Arthur," he removed the lid of the vial underneath my nose. A strong sweet smell overwhelmed my senses, and I felt my eyelids droop shut. Then everything around me, the sounds of Eames' men chattering and the feeling of the van's seat underneath me, faded away, as if I were sinking underwater, and I fell unconscious.

X-X-X-X-X

_I know everybody let's you down and I'll do the same_

_But know I'll always be around this can remain the same_

_Call me when you need me, call me anything you want_

_Darling believe me, nothing I haven't done before_

X-X-X-X-X

Disclaimer: I don't own Inception. All rights reserved to Warner Brothers.

**A/N: Yay! I got some reviews! Whew! I was afraid I would get a lot less, honestly. Thanks to all my reviewers, I'm pretty sure I replied to every person who reviewed. Soo yeah, this chapter is a little bit longer, so I hope you guys enjoyed that :)**

**First off, I completely forgot to mention the lyrics that I post at the beginning and end of every chapter. They are songs by my favorite singer/songwriter, Florence Welch. Most of you might know her as Florence & the Machine. Her new album "Ceremonials" just came out, and I honestly think it is one of my all time favorite albums. She is such a beautiful singer, and amazing songwriter, and I strongly encourage you to listen to the entire album. Each chapter is themed off one of her songs from her new album.**

**Second, I AM LOOKING FOR A BETA! If anyone is interested, message me to let me know! I definitely don't have time to edit as closely as I would like, because I am turning in college applications, which are due at the end of November, and I am freaking stressed! So please, it would be a lot more helpful to have a beta!**

**Third, I would like to mention how much work and effort I put into these chapters! Obviously, I live near the Los Angeles area (I'm not saying where!) so I have a good idea of the area. All my facts are correct, as far as law and police procedures! I research that shit! There's nothing worse than having an incorrect story with false facts, which make absolutely no sense.**

**AND FINALLY, WHO NOTICED THE AMERICAN HORROR STORY REFERENCE? Cobb says "Jesus H. Christ" in the beginning. Do any of you watch that show? It's _ah-maz-ing! _I'm pretty sure it's my new obsession. **

**Also, I know I brought up a kind of controversial topic: legalization. Try and guess where I stand on that… First person to get it right gets a cookie! **

**Please, pleasepleaseplease review, it males my day! :) I like to know that people read the work that I put a lot of effort into. Wow this was a really long Author's note, and I am sorry for wasting your time!**

**Have a wonderful day!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Warning: Graphic sex, language, and drug references**

_She can't see the landscape anymore_

_It's all painted in her grief_

_All of her history etched out at her feet_

_Now all of the landscape, it's just an empty place_

_Acres of longing, mountains of tenderness_

X-X-X-X-X

Chapter 5: Landscape

_**Eames**_

The second that his chocolate brown eyes fluttered shut and Arthur's breathing slowed to a slow steady rhythm; I let out a strained breath and returned the vial of chloroform to my pocket. Shit. Blackmailing Arthur was so much harder to carry out than I had suspected. How on Earth was I going to maintain my cool, collected composure when I had to look into Arthur's eyes, knowing I was causing him mental pain?

I had been a criminal for years, pretty much the majority of my life. I had never felt any sort of guilt or regret for anything I had done, until now. What was it about Arthur that caused my insides to melt every time he looked at me with that fearful expression? I had nearly called off the deal when he started to cry in the car.

Decidedly, I straightened up, exiting the van and barking orders to all my men.

"Boss, you alright?" Billy asked me, a concerned expression forming on his face.

"Hmm?" I lifted my eyes to his, not realized that I had been biting my lip and scrunching my brow in deep thought. "Oh yes. I'm fine. Let's go."

I turned and walked towards the van, Billy alongside me.

"So, Arthur," He said coyly.

I snapped my head around to glare at him. "Yes?"

Billy raised his eyebrows, "Still got the hots for him?"

"No, I never had the 'hots' for him," I rolled my eyes at Billy's playful banter. "He is nothing more than a pawn,"

"Uh-huh, sure," Billy chuckled and climbed into the van, waiting for me to follow before sliding the door shut.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I growled and climbed into the backseat, settling next to Arthur's slumped form.

"Oh, come on! Look at you! You're practically spooning the man," Billy gestured towards Arthur.

"Am not!" I snapped and scooted an inch away from the man for emphasis. "There's nothing wrong with a little harmless flirting to set the man on edge. I have to be the one in control here remember? I don't let stupid little petty emotions get in the way of a job. Never had, and I never will."

"In control, huh?" Billy said incredulously. "Boss, you've been having dreams about the man every night! You think we don't hear you moaning the man's name like some sort of hormonal teenager in love?"

My cheeks turned beet red and I leaned forward. "That is called _lust_, Billy. Not love. I don't fall in love." I painted a sneer across myself and leaned back into the seat.

"It's not impossible," Billy shrugged. "I'm just sayin'! I don't want you to," he paused and motioned with his hands, "You know… Get hurt."

I stared at him darkly before continuing, "I appreciate the concern Bill, but I will be fine. I am a professional. Emotions can be turned on and off like a switch for me."

"Whatever you say, boss," Billy shrugged and sat down in the seat in front of Arthur and I, giving Dan the all clear to move out.

Dan started up the van with a deep rumbling noise, and I turned to make sure Arthur was fastened securely. For a moment, I lingered over his face, feeling his warm breath make my lips tingle.

"Get a hold of yourself." I murmured quietly to myself and pulled away, turning my attention to the setting sun that was visible through the windshield. "Bill, I'm taking a nap,"

"Alright boss," Billy kicked his feet up on the seats next to him and pulled out a book, "Just make sure you warn us before you start having a wet dream again."

I opened my mouth, about to say something in my defense, but then realized that I didn't have much of an argument. "Right… if I start, uh, you know… Just wake me up,"

Billy chuckled and opened his book.

I sighed, leaning my head against the inside of the van and letting my eyelids fall shut.

_I awoke in a coffee shop. It was empty, and outside, it was nighttime. I had never been in this particular coffee shop before._

_I slowly approached the counter and rang the service bell. I don't remember how long I stood there, it felt like an hour, standing and listening to the silence. Finally, I realized that there was no one who would help me, and decided it was time to leave. Turning, I walked towards the glass doors._

"_Can I help you?" A soft voice called from behind me. I spun around and spotted none other than Arthur standing behind the cash register._

"_Ah, yes I rang the bell… and no one answered." I turned around and approached the counter, looking Arthur up and down. He wore a plain black apron over his tight fitting black polo, and wore a soft curious expression on his face. Arthur's soft brown curls framed his face beautifully. I wanted to run my fingers through them so badly, but the expression that this projection of Arthur was giving me showed that he had no idea who I was._

"_Ah, I, um wanted a regular cappuccino, please," I made to remove my wallet, but Arthur held up a palm._

"_Don't worry about it, sir," Arthur waved my hand down._

"_Are you sure?" I smiled._

"_Of course," Arthur lifted his eyes to mine. "I feel bad for making you wait. Don't worry about it"_

"_Oh, well thank you," I replied, pleased at Arthur's polite demeanor._

"_No problem," Arthur said gently and smiled at me ever so slightly._

_I immediately felt a wave of desire crash over me. Something about the way this projection of Arthur looked at me like an innocent little kitten made me want to scoop him up in my arms and violate him in more ways than I could imagine. I wanted to make him scream and whine underneath my touch. I wanted to-_

"_You can step over here to wait, sir," I heard Arthur motion to a counter a few feet to the right._

"_Oh, yes of course," I moved down the counter and watched patiently from behind as Arthur started up the espresso machine and leaned against the counter._

_I watched Arthur more closely than I would in real life, contemplating his every move as he pulled a coffee cup from under the counter and poured milk into a pitcher. The tight dark wash jeans he wore did wonders for his arse, making me want to jump him right then._

_Then suddenly, a thought hit me. This was a dream. What difference would it make if I advanced on this projection of Arthur? I could do anything I wanted in a dream, and it wouldn't carry into real life._

_I cautiously stepped around the counter and approached Arthur from behind, making sure I didn't startle him around a hot coffee machine. My fingers reached out and touched him gently on the waist._

_Arthur jumped, and whirled around, looking at me, a startled look flickering across his face. "What are you-?"_

"_Shh," I placed two fingers over those luscious pink lips, and pressed my body firmly against his. His expression turned even more surprised and he attempted to wiggle away._

_I laughed and wrapped my arms around him, gripping his wrists like handcuffs. He whimpered like a puppy, "I've never done this…"_

"_Don't worry darling," I said soothingly and pressed my mouth against his smooth creamy neck, blowing cool air against his ear. I felt him shudder and arch backwards. "What's your name, dear?"_

"_Arthur," he answered shyly, groaning as I kissed his neck gently and ran the tip of my nose down into the curve of his neck._

"_Mm, Arthur," I smiled against his skin and released his wrists from my grip, "You are incredibly beautiful." I brought my hands up to his collar and unbuttoned the four top buttons of his polo, exposing the top of his smooth chest._

_He half-smiled and almost looked nervous. "This is new to me… I've never been with another man before."_

"_Mmm," I hummed against his skin as I brought my face to the front of his throat and sucked gently on his neck. "So you've never been touched like this before then?"_

_I pulled down the front of his shirt even more and sucked on the skin underneath, drawing out a high-pitched whine from the man. I chuckled and reached around and untied the man's apron, pulling it forward over his head._

_Arthur looked at me, face flushed, eyes wide with astonishment. Then, I did something that I had wanted to do to Arthur since the day that I first laid eyes on him. I kissed him square on the lips._

_It didn't last long; I immediately pulled away and continued to disrobe Arthur. Ever so slowly, my hands lifted the hem of his black polo to reveal his smooth toned upper body. I looked up and noticed a blush creeping across Arthur's cheeks and he looked to the side nervously._

"_What's the matter darling?" I lifted my hand and stroked the side of Arthur's head, running my hand through his dark brown hair._

"_I'm just a little nervous, I guess," Arthur shook his head._

"_Don't be. You're absolutely_ _beautiful." I smiled, and dipped my head down to run my tongue across Arthur's left nipple, earning a deep moan from Arthur's throat. I teased and flicked the pink flesh with my tongue, rubbing the other neglected nub between my fingertips._

"_Jesus Christ!" I heard Arthur moan and he leaned back against the counter, allowing me full access to his torso. However, at this point, I was more interested in his lower body…_

_My hands crept slowly down Arthur's stomach and wrestled with his belt buckle._

"_Wait," Arthur pulled my hands away, and for a moment, I thought I had gone too far. However, a seductive smirk crossed his face and he reached out and slid my jacket off of my shoulders, letting the article fall to the floor._

_I grinned as Arthur's hands wrestled with my shirt buttons almost clumsily, and I could detect how nervous he really was._

"_I'm not as swift as you are," Arthur said quietly, almost embarrassed as he finally reached the bottom button and slid the black oxford from my body._

"_It's adorable, darling," I watched Arthur's eyes widen as his eyes roamed over my muscular body. He looked incredibly tuned on._

"_I like this," Arthur murmured as he ran soft fingers over the union jack on my left pectoral. He traced my other numerous tattoos that spread across my chest, stomach, and biceps._

_I smiled at his amazement and brought my hands to Arthur's bare hips, creeping my fingers around to his lower back. "I like you Arthur… A lot,"_

_His eyes widened at my words, and I leaned forward again to place another light kiss on his lips. My hands fell lower and gripped Arthur's toned arse, making him cry out in pleasure._

"_I want you," Arthur's mouth fell on my ear as I squeezed his arse tighter and tighter, and I was afraid I was almost hurting him, lifting him off the ground._

"_Are you hard?" he asked me shyly._

_I groaned, "Beyond, darling. Are you?"_

"_Find out," Arthur whispered hotly into my ear, and I nearly lost it right there. My throbbing erection was straining against my pants, begging to be released. But like Arthur wanted me to, I went straight for his belt buckle, and undid it as nimbly and quickly as I possibly could._

_He shimmied out of his jeans, letting his hands rest on my hips as I hooked a finger into the waistband of his boxers and pulled down slowly, watching his fully hard cock be released from the cotton confines._

"_God, you are so amazing," I fell to my knees and spread Arthur's legs ever so slightly, running my hands up the inside of his creamy thighs and resting them on his hips._

"_What's your name?" Arthur panted, "I'm gonna need something to scream,"_

"_My name is William," I said, looking him in the eye. "You can call me Will."_

"_William," he spoke adoringly and smiled._

_I smiled back and turned my attention to Arthur's erection, which was throbbing, anticipating my touch. Leaning closer and closer, I opened my mouth slowly and ran my tongue over the tip of his cock, gaining a strained groan from Arthur._

_I grinned and took the tip of his cock in between my lips, flicking my tongue over the tip._

"_Will," Arthur groaned, and tried to buck forward, but I held his hips down with my hands, "Please, please… I need…. need… you-please…"_

"_What do you need, pet?" I smiled, releasing the tip of his cock from my mouth._

"_I need you… your mouth… I need it…" Arthur whined in a high-pitched voice._

"_Really darling? Well if you insist," I chuckled before opening up and taking his cock fully in my mouth until the tip hit the back of my throat._

_Arthur almost screamed. He let out something between a scream and a yelp, but either way, it was making my cock throb harder and harder._

"_Jesus, fucking, goddamn Christ Will, oh my fucking god, that feels…" Arthur rambled strings of curse words, making me groan in response. I wanted to reach down and touch myself, however, if I didn't hold Arthur down, he would shove his cock down my throat and choke me._

_My left hand found his balls and began massaging quickly, wanting to bring Arthur closer and closer to his end._

"_Will, this isn't… this isn't…" Arthur was talking more incoherently, and for a moment, I dropped his pulsating cock from my mouth and looked up at him._

"_What is it darling?"_

"_This is amazing, but it's not enough," Arthur whined, "Will… I want you inside of me… now."_

_That was all he had to say. Quickly, I shot up and nearly ripped the fly off my trousers in attempt to take them off. After stepping out of my pants and boxers, I gently picked Arthur up and lowered him to the ground._

"_Here… Turn over… no, like this," I guided Arthur's hips so that he was sitting on all fours, with his rear end facing me._

_Slowly, I ran my hands down Arthur's back and ran my finger's over his smooth arse, causing him to arch his back, widening him up even more. I ignored my subconscious screaming at me that this was a dream, and there was no way in hell the real Arthur would ever let you do something like this to him. _

"_Will, hurry!" Arthur moaned, "I need you, now!"_

"_Alright darling, hold on I have to prepare you," I moved my hand towards the space in between Arthur's legs, and spread his legs apart a little further, allowing him to open up more. Sucking on my index finger and generously coating it in saliva, I brought my hand down and slid one finger into him, feeling around the tense muscles._

_Arthur cried out in pain, and I nearly pulled out at the sound, but he clenched around me, and he shook his head, "I'm fine. Keep going,"_

"_Alright, tell me if it hurts darling," I exhaled slowly, and brought my finger out slightly, then pushing it inside deeper._

_Arthur moaned and gasped and sighed as I swirled my wet finger around inside of him, trying to coat everywhere I possibly could with moisture. Pulling out quickly, I sucked on both my index and middle finger, and entered both into Arthur this time. Arthur let out another choked gasp as I spread my fingers, trying to open him up as much as possible._

"_Oh God!" Arthur banged his fist on the ground and arched his back again, in pain or pleasure, I couldn't tell. Hopefully, a mixture of both._

"_Are you ready, pet?" I asked, spitting quietly into my palm and rubbing the saliva all over my pulsing cock._

"_Yes Will! Please, fuck me," Arthur let out through straggled gasps. I obliged, and kneeled on both knees directly behind Arthur's beautiful behind. Carefully lining up my hips with his, I silently thanked my subconscious for giving me such a beautiful dream, and slid into Arthur with one smooth motion._

_I let out a deep moan, while Arthur screamed out my name. Arthur was so incredibly hot and tight around me, I had never felt anything like it before._

"_You feel so good pet!" I moaned as I pulled out and pushed back in again, trying to reach deep inside of him._

_Arthur screamed out after that, and I assumed I had hit his prostrate. After a few more thrusts, I had discovered the right position that reached the gland, and I let myself drive into Arthur at full force._

"_God, fucking Christ Will, I can't hold on much longer-" Arthur moaned. I managed to release a hand from around Arthur's sweaty hip and stroke him a few times before I felt him tense up around me, and finally come all over my hand._

_Arthur's muscles spasmed around me, as he came down slowly from his orgasm, I felt myself get closer and closer. Finally, after a few hard thrusts, my muscles clenched and I felt myself come inside Arthur._

_My thrusts slowed down more and more as I rode my orgasms, waves and waves of pleasure crashing over me._

_After I was finished, I pulled myself from Arthur, ignoring the mess on the smooth wooden floors, and collapsed next to Arthur, face down._

_Arthur smiled lazily, and reached up, running a hand through my hair, which was stuck against my sweaty forehead._

"_I think I'm in love with you Will," he spoke softly._

_I smiled but inside, my heart was filling with sorrow as I realized that this was probably the only time I would ever hear that coming from Arthur's beautiful lips, and it wasn't even reality._

_Half-smiling, I leaned forward and pressed my lips to his again, but this time, I didn't pull away. Our lips stayed in contact as both our eyes fluttered shut, and I slipped into darkness._

I awoke from my amazing dream with my head resting on Arthur's shoulder. Gasping, I sat up quickly, realizing that he was still unconscious, and we were still driving to Victorville. Looking down, I hissed at the wet spot over the crotch of my trousers, and looked up to see Billy asleep, with his head leaning again the wall of the car, and headphones in his ears.

Thankful that he had not heard my dream, I sat forward and got up, cautiously walking to the passenger seat next to Dan and looking at our surroundings through the windshield. It was nighttime.

"Awake, boss?" Dan yawned and looked over at me.

"Yes thanks for noticing Daniel," I rubbed my eyes. "What time is it?"

"Ten thirty. We're almost at the location." Dan took another glance at the map taped to the dashboard. It would be much easier to use a GPS, but if they really needed to, police could track GPS records through satellite records. So we stuck to the old-fashioned way of getting around.

"Daniel… Did you, uh… hear me _say_ anything in my sleep?" I asked, my cheeks starting to flush.

"Nope. As soon as you hit the sack, I turned on the radio." Dan kept his eyes on the road.

"Oh… Alright, thank you," I said. "Are the others on track?"

"Yes." Dan held up a walkie-talkie "Neil is still on the 18, and Jack's about ten minutes away on the 247."

"Good," I leaned back and tried not to grimace at the wet feeling in my pants. "Have you spoken to Nick?"

"Yep. Everything with Mrs. Cobb is fine. She has her own separate room, and I made sure to tell him that if anyone lays a hand on her, you will personally blow their brains out." He added.

I nodded, "Why thank you Daniel. You know, you're pretty helpful. I might just keep you."

"Really, sir?" Dan smiled and looked over at me. "Wow thanks. I guess I'm pretty good for a rookie, huh?"

"Yes, you are," I smiled back and looked out of the windshield ahead of us. I watched the peaceful dark expanse of desert pass us by on the empty road and felt myself relax a great deal. So far, everything was going according to plan… well except the part with me maybe sort of feeling something for our captor…

"If you don't mind me asking, sir," Dan interrupted my thoughts abruptly, "but what made you come to America?"

"Well," I began slowly, contemplating whether I should tell him or not. The only other person who knew me this personally was Billy.

I decided to continue "I, uh, fell in love with an American."

Dan looked over at me, an astonished look on his face. "Really?"

I nodded and continued, "I had first started dream work in London, where I was born, and I remember my very first job, right after I dropped out of high school. I was seventeen, and young, and stupid." I laughed and continued, "But hell, I was a damn good Forger, and that's why I got hired for a large corporation in France. The CEO assembled this very professional team of men, all of them much older than me. One of the men, the Architect, was nearly twice my age, and absolutely gorgeous. He was American. During training, he would flirt with me, slap my arse, and leave me notes. You know, generally non-professional things that could endanger the job. I should have warded off his advances immediately, but like I said, I was young and stupid, and I let things go too far with him. After the job was over, I decided I would move to America with him once I turned eighteen. He promised that we'd continue dream work together, just the two of us…" I slowed my story, almost unbelieving that I was talking about something I hadn't talked about in nearly ten years. "Things went well for a while, and we rented an apartment in Boston and I got dual citizenship in America and in England." My throat clenched, and I knew I was coming to the worst part of the story. "After a while, I noticed how frequently he was gone every night. At first I thought he was cheating on me whenever he would go out to the bar to have a drink. Of course, I could never go, because it's illegal for eighteen-year-olds to drink here…" I shook my head, "I was so suspicious, I secretly followed him one night, and found him going not to the bars, but to a house…" I glanced sideways and looked at Dan's expression. His brow was furrowed in concern.

"So he _was_ cheating?" Dan asked cautiously.

"Yes," I said sadly, "But not _on_ me. He was cheating on his wife and child, _with_ _me_,"

Dan's jaw dropped as we sat in silence, both looking ahead at the road in front of us. "Oh boss, I'm… I'm sorry. That's awful. What did you do?"

"I left. After I looked through the window and saw him sitting with his wedding ring on, playing with his little daughter joyously, I ran back to our apartment, packed up my stuff, and took the first plane out of Boston. I didn't even have a specific destination in mind; I simply took the nearest plane possible. Once I landed, I found myself in Vegas. And that's where I decided my life of crime and dream work would continue. That's also where I met Billy. We started robbing banks, stealing from the rich, selling drugs etcetera. I introduced him to the world of dream work after I had acquired enough money to get a PASIV, and well… the rest is history." I shrugged and leaned back in the passenger seat.

"How were you able to keep yourself from murdering that man?" Dan shook his head. "I know I wouldn't be able to."

"Well…" I looked down at my feet and chuckled, "When I turned twenty five, I was officially a wanted man in America. I decided that at this point, my former lover would know how dangerous I had become, so I decided to pay him a little visit. I went to the house that I had seen him in with his wife and kids, and found out that he had moved. He had probably suspected that I would come back to him eventually, so he got the hell out of Boston. It wasn't hard for me to track him down to Virginia of all places. His daughter was in middle school, his wife was a stay at home mom, and still had no idea that her husband was a dirty rotten cheater. I watched him carefully for a few weeks, thinking of the best possible way to get revenge. Which would hurt him more? If I got his wife, or his daughter? I finally decided on both. After coming home from work one day, he walked into his house to find me standing in the living room holding his wife and sweet little daughter on the couch at gunpoint. He was so shocked and horrified at the same time, that he broke down crying and apologizing, groveling at my feet like a pathetic little weasel. I yelled at him for a good hour, pouring out my heart about how much I had loved him, and how devastated I had been, and so on. His wife was horrified. His daughter started crying. At the end of my speech, I gave him an ultimatum: he could either save his wife and daughter by giving up his own life, or he could live, but watch me kill his family. I told him he had ten seconds to answer or else I would kill all three of them."

I paused, looking over at Dan's expression. He looked amused, "So what did he choose?"

"He didn't," I said bluntly. "He lay there on the ground sobbing, until his ten seconds had passed, and I buried bullets in all three of their heads."

"Wow," Dan exhaled slowly, looking over at me. "That's one hell of a story boss. I'm glad to hear that son of a bitch got what he deserved though."

"I honestly feel bad for his wife and child," I shook my head, "I still kind of wish I had let his wife live, so that she would live the rest of her life hating him for knowing that he was a dirty liar. But I don't go back on my word, ever."

"He had it coming, boss," Dan grinned. "But I'm still sorry that that had to happen to you. But hey, if you never had any of this happen to you, you would probably be still in the UK, living a boring normal life in an office cubicle, right?"

"Exactly," I nodded, "That is the opposite of what I want my life to be."

It was silent for a few moments before I spoke cautiously, "So Dan. Can I ask _you_ a personal question?"

"Sure," the young man shrugged.

"What did you think when I was interviewing you after I told you that I'm gay?" I asked curiously.

"I honestly didn't care. Hell, I would've let you fuck me just to get the job, if I had to. And I'm not even gay. But after Carly and I ended it, I was so…" he sighed and shook his head sadly, "Desperate. I would've done anything for a job like this to escape that world of hurt."

"I understand," I sighed, "You know, it's so strange that I'm so attracted to Arthur, because he's the first man I've wanted ever since… you know."

"What was his name?" Dan asked.

"Ryan," I answered.

Dan nodded, and continued, "So you can be honest with me boss. Do you have feelings for Arthur?"

I was silent for about a minute, thinking about the question. "I honestly don't know Daniel." I finally answered, and that was the absolute truth. "I don't know."

O-O-O-O-O

Once we reached the warehouse, it was eleven o'clock at night. I picked Arthur up from the back seat and set him in my designated room while Billy and Dan brought in the luggage and equipment. There were already a handful of my men there, some sleeping lightly and some standing watch, waiting for me to arrive. I quickly checked the room that Mrs. Cobb was asleep in, making sure it was secure, and then headed outside.

The second van, which was driven by Neil, arrived ten minutes later. We unloaded, and five minutes later, the last van, driven by Jack, arrived.

After everything was set up, I quickly changed from my trousers into jeans and entered the room where I had set Arthur. He lay on the worn cot where I had left him, parts of his slicked hair falling around his face.

I sighed and lay down next to the man, making sure not to snuggle too closely to the warm body. I turned on my side, making sure to put a good inch between Arthur and me. Letting my eyes fall shut, I let myself slip into my thoughts, until I finally drifted off into a light sleep. I knew I would need it, because tomorrow would be a lot of work.

X-X-X-X-X

_She wants the silence but fears the solitude_

_She wants to be alone and together with you_

_So she ran to the lighthouse, hoped that it would help her see_

_She's sober at the lighthouse and then washed out to sea_

_Cause she's just like the weather, can't hold her together_

_Born from dark water, daughter of the rain and snow_

_Cause it's burning through the bloodline, it's cutting down the family tree_

_Rolling in the landscape, darling, in between you and me_

X-X-X-X-X

Disclaimer: I don't own Inception. All rights reserved to Warner Brothers.

**A/N: Thank you to my reviewers! And I strongly encourage those who are reading to review, it really helps me improve my writing.**

**First, I now have a beta, Bethany Ruth, who is awesome for beta-ing for me! Shout out and thanks to her :)**

**Second, I am really excited for this story. Like seriously, I have like the whole thing planned out in my head. And I know it would be easier to write out the whole thing and then post, but I'd rather get feedback from you guys.**

**Let me know what you think, and thanks for reading! Have a beautiful day!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Warnings: Violence, language, and suspenseful situations**

_But I believe_

_There's no salvation for me now,_

_No space among the clouds,_

_And I've seen that I'm heading down,_

_But that's alright_

X-X-X-X-X

Chapter 6: Lover to Lover

_**Arthur**_

The first thing I was able to detect, as I awoke from my deep state of unconsciousness, was how hot it was. Sweat dripped down my back as I rolled over and was surprised to have nearly bumped heads with Eames, who was sound asleep next to me.

At first, I was shocked to be lying on a rock hard cot next to my captor, who had left the door wide open, and made no attempt to tie me down to keep me from going anywhere. I was glad to find that I was still dressed in my work clothes, which meant that Eames hadn't attempted to undress me in my slumber.

Ever so cautiously, I rolled back over so I was facing away from Eames and then rolled off the cot, so that I was lying prostrate on the cool concrete below me. Ever so cautiously, I pushed myself off the ground, bringing my knees up to my chest and planting my feet firmly on the ground, keeping my eyes on Eames' the whole time while I slowly stood up.

Then, I ran.

Sprinting out of the room, I looked all around me, in case I were to run into Billy, or any of his other men for that matter. I stopped once I reached the edge of the long narrow hallway and peered around the edge as quietly as possible.

I immediately pulled back when I caught a glimpse of five or so men who were asleep on the floor in the other room. There was no sign of Mal. Turning, I sprinted down the hall in the other direction, desperately searching for a door that Mal could possibly be held captive in.

I slowed once I approached the open door that Eames had been asleep in, catching my breath, and pulling the front of my collared shirt over my mouth to silence my heavy breathing. I peeked around the corner ever so slightly, and felt my heart drop to the floor when I saw the empty cot inside.

Eames wasn't there. That means he had woken up, and was somewhere nearby.

Looking up at the hallway ahead of me, I spotted a door at the end, a chain fitting snugly around the door handle. That's the room that Mal's in. It must be.

I sprinted down the hall way at top speed and finally reached the locked door, pulling at the chain, frustrated. Eames would probably be the only one who would have the key. But I had no idea where Eames was–

"Ah, you're awake. I thought I'd find you around," I heard a familiar voice call behind me.

Whirling around, I spotted Eames who was walking towards me at the end of the hall. Thankfully, he had decided to choose a less hideously offending outfit for today: a pair of tan slacks and a black button down. "Come on and get breakfast darling,"

Hatred coursed through my veins as I reluctantly followed the cocky man back down the hall, and entered into the main room of the warehouse.

"What do you feel like this morning? Bagel? Donut?" Eames turned, holding a brown paper bag his friend, Billy handed him. "I've got coffee as well,"

"I'm not hungry, thank you," I murmured and looked around at Eames' men, who were now awake and bustling about. Most of them looked older and somewhat gruff, but there was the occasional young man, like the American that Eames had introduced me to yesterday. What was his name again? Dan, Danny?

"You'll need it," Eames caught my eye, a serious expression on his face. "We're jumping right into your training today and you need your energy,"

"I'm fine," I turned and snapped. "I can wait 'til lunch." It was true. My stomach was churning with anxiety at the moment, and putting food in it would not fare well in this situation. It was bad enough that I was here against my will.

"Whatever you say." Eames shrugged and pulled out a plain bagel, ripping a large chunk out with his teeth. "So today," he said, his mouth full of food. I grimaced at the sight, "You're meeting our other team members. Our Architect, and our Extractor."

Architect and Extractor. Then what was Eames? I scrunched my eyebrow and suspiciously sat down on a wooden crate nearby.

"Still haven't guessed yet, I assume?" the man laughed at my puzzled expression. "I tend to _play_ a rather large _role_ in the job, darling…" He was putting emphasis on certain words. I squinted my eyes at him as it all started to come together in my head.

"You're a Forger? Like an actual Forger?" I asked him, dumbfounded. Never in my entire past career of dream work had I met someone who possessed the ability to perform that particular skill. It took incredible strength of mind, as well as an acute skill of retaining details. Not to mention flawless acting.

"I am," Eames said after taking a large sip of black coffee and plopped down next to me, a little too closely. I shifted to the left uncomfortably and watched as Eames men wandered about, pulling together tables and unpacking office materials, which would soon be necessary for the job. "Surprised? Or impressed." he shot me a heart-stopping wink.

I rolled my eyes and changed the subject, "When are the others getting here?" I asked monotonously.

"Soon, I suspect." Eames sighed and pulled out a pocket watch from his jeans, checking the time. "Oh and another thing. Do you have a totem on you?"

I swallowed and shook my head. "I destroyed my totem when I quit dream work. It represented a part of my past that I didn't want to remember anymore…"

"Well you are certainly going to need one," Eames sighed and looked over at me questioningly. "Any requests?"

I eyed the pocket watch that Eames was fiddling with in his hand, and spoke slowly, "Yeah. I've always had an idea for a watch that ticks backwards in reality, but clockwise in the dreamscape. Although, I've never been particularly good at mechanics and stuff."

Eames suddenly whipped his head around to look at his men bustling about, "Neil!" he barked, making me jump "Get over here,"

A tall dark-haired man with a thick mustache approached us, and Eames stood up and spoke into his ear. The man named Neil nodded and looked down at me.

"I could get you a pocket watch, mate. I'd have to teach you how to change the mechanics, though." He spoke in a thick cockney accent. "Will tells me that other people can't touch it. Are ya up for it?"

"Yes," I answered and followed the man once he beckoned me over to a hallway across the room.

"Awright, 'ere, I've got a lo' o' knick-knacks and such… There should be som'in' in 'ere that would work," Neil was rummaging through a large wooden crate, evidently full of coils, metal scraps, and other junk. "Ah, 'ere we go," Pulling out an old damaged pocket watch made from gold, he handed it to me by the chain. "There ya go, mate. Right Allan Border right there."

I looked up at him, confused, as I took the cool metal watch, "Excuse me?"

"Oh sorry… I've got a bit of an 'abit for slang." Neil grinned, "Will 'ates it."

"Have you known him long?" I asked curiously.

"Nah, just got 'ired a few months ago," Neil shook his head, "I'd watch out for that one. Billy tells me he's got a spot of psycho in 'im,"

"Really," I narrowed my eyes.

"Yeah. Said once he gets a thing to rant about, he's out of control with 'is temper. Completely mental an' all." Neil said, widening his eyes in caution.

I swallowed and turned around to look at Eames, who was laughing and joking with Billy. He hadn't shown any signs of mental unstableness. Could it be?

"Well that's all just rumors, mate." Neil clapped me on the back, and I almost fell over. "Let's get that watch o' yours tickin' " he smiled and walked back into the main room. I followed slowly.

A few hours passed of failed attempted to fix the vintage pocket watch, with Neil watching over my shoulder, barking directions and movements, which I was not good at whatsoever. It would have been a hell of a lot easier for him to just do the job himself, but I remembered the most important aspect of owning a totem: don't let anyone touch it. That led me to thinking, what was Eames' totem?

Speak of the devil, I looked up and immediately met eyes with the Brit, who was watching me bent over the watch from across the room, a curious glint in his eye. I swallowed thickly at the heavy expression he was giving me, and bent back over to continue working on my totem.

Why were all the little looks and winks he had been giving me make me weak at the knees? I felt like an immature schoolboy who was discovering his feelings for the first time. Sure Eames was handsome and roguish, but I hadn't had any sort of relationship in ages. My last was with my high school "girlfriend", Mindy during senior year. Even then, I knew that I could never be happy in a relationship with a woman. However, I never wanted to accept that I was more drawn to men, for fear of my classmates' judgment. I'd always kept my sexuality on lock, even though some aspects were obvious: my obsession with neatness and order, my particular sense of fashion, and my taste in what would be considered "girly" music.

This was definitely not the best time to be rediscovering my sexual feelings, especially when so much pressure was on me to perform this job, and get back safely to L.A. with Mal. So I ignored the mad blush painting my cheeks after locking eyes with Eames and focused vigorously on the task at hand.

"Darling, come meet your team members!" I heard Eames call once I had finally got the tiny second hand to tick, anti-clockwise.

I looked up and was shocked to meet eyes with an all too familiar face, and the face of another man I had never met before. Standing up and slipping my new totem into my pocket, I slowly made my way over and approached Eames who was standing next to none other than Jonathon Black and an older Spanish man who looked to be in his mid-forties.

"Arthur, darling, this is Mr. Jonathon Black, your Extractor, and Kelly Ortega, your Architect. Gentlemen, this is Police Deputy Arthur Davis, who is our Point Man. Right, love?" Eames pulled me against him, like I was a significant other he was introducing to his parents. I felt the blush creeping around my cheeks as I pushed him away lightly and locked eye with Jonathon.

"We know each other." I said softly and shook hands with him.

"Arthur," Jonathon said, a dry smile forming on his lips. "Nice to see you again. I hear you're here against your will?"

"Blackmail," I spoke bitterly, shooting Eames a glare.

"Well I'm glad you had half a brain to get someone who knows that they're doing." Jonathon said and locked eyes with Eames.

"How is it that you two know each other again?" Eames asked, motioning between the two of us.

"We did our fair share of jobs together before he retired," Jonathon shrugged, "But whenever I was extracting, I would be sure to get Arthur. He was one hell of a Point Man; I'll tell you that,"

I felt like I should thank the man, or smile in appreciation, but I felt no pride for my previous career path. There was no doubt that I was good at what I had done. However under no circumstance did that justify it.

"Nice to meet you Mr. Davis," Kelly reached out and shook my hand firmly. He gave me a toothy smile, which contrasted against his tanned rugged skin.

"You too," I replied obligatorily.

"Come on gentlemen. I invite you to sit down so we may discuss this job. Shall we?" Eames motioned for everyone to follow him past the bustle of the main room and into a secluded, smaller kitchen, the table set with a kettle and cups ready for tea.

"So Arthur, where are you from?" Kelly sat to my right and leaned towards me.

"I'm from L.A." I answered politely

"I see. So what made you quit dream work, might I ask?" Kelly sipped his tea and dumped a large amount of cream into the cup.

"I just realized that there was no justice in it. I realized how many lives I altered and even ruined because of my work, and I just don't think that one person should do that to another." I explained myself for what seemed like the millionth time that week.

"So you are a moralist, I take it?" Kelly asked, a smile stretching across his narrow face.

"I like to think so," I shrugged and looked over, meeting eyes with Eames again, who raised an eyebrow, and turned to Jonathon.

"So gentlemen, Mr. Arthur doesn't know anything about the job yet. Jonathon, since you're the Extractor, why don't you explain it to him?" Eames suggested. That wasn't completely true; he had already told me it involved Inception.

"Well," Jonathon cleared his throat and loosened the maroon tie around his neck. "First of all, I would like to explain the magnitude and importance that has been placed on this job. We will be performing Inception at the end of this month, so that means that you, Arthur, will have to perfect your training and skills in two weeks _exactly_. That is about half the time it would normally take me to train my team, but unfortunately, we are severely limited on time. I know you haven't even gone under a PASIV in, what, ten years? The first couple of days will be purely devoted to getting you used to the dreamscape and the somnacin, while the remainder will be focused on what you're here for: research on our targets. Yes, that was plural; we will be incepting more than one person."

My jaw dropped slightly at these words as I shot a panicked look to Eames who averted his eyes from my expression and fiddled with the handle of his teacup.

Jonathon continued at an even quicker pace, "So now, the job. Last month, I got a call from a mister Glenn Navarro, the CEO of Spain's largest enterprise. Now lately, as you know, all of Europe has been taking an economic dive. Mr. Navarro believes that since his company holds most of Spain's wealth, the Prime Minister will attempt to break up his company in order to distribute the wealth. Of course, Mr. Navarro can't allow that to happen, so that's where we come in. Two months from now, the leaders of France, Great Britain, Russia, and the United States will be voting on whether or not Navarro's company will be broken up at the United Nations conference. Majority rules, so it is our job to incept three of the four political leaders. Arthur, it is your job to research each of the men, and figure out which is our best bet."

My heart thudded loudly as I looked at Eames again, a horrified expression on my face. This was undoubtedly the biggest job I would ever do. All of the former jobs I had done when I still did dream work had involved businessmen or rich greedy heirs, but never political leaders of countries!

"This is absolutely insane." I murmured, still staring at Eames.

"Excuse me?" I heard Jonathon ask, taken aback.

"This is insane." I repeated, only louder, my head snapping over to glare at Jonathon. "How in the hell am I supposed to do that?"

He shrugged, "You're the Point Man. You made it work in the past Arthur. I trust you to do this job as accurately as you did before retiring."

"Well, right now, I think that it would be a good idea to simply get the feel of being under a PASIV, darling," Eames interjected, standing up.

"Good idea," Kelly agreed and followed.

Jonathon looked back at me and stood up. "Shall we?"

I shook my head skeptically and stood up with the other three men, following back to the large room of the warehouse. While we had had our discussion, Eames' men had set up four reclined lawn chairs, all arranged in a square, with a table in the center. Sitting atop the table was something I hadn't seen for a long time: a PASIV device. The hard gleaming silver case sent shivers down my spine as we approached the set-up.

"Gentlemen," Eames murmured as he stood aside and let the three of us lie down in each of the lawn chairs.

My eyed flickered up to see Billy unlocking the case with a cautious _click_ and pulling out each of the IV chords. I hesitantly pulled back one of the sleeves of my dress shirt, and extended the exposed flesh to Billy once he reached me. Our eyes met, and he silently offered me an apology, jabbing the double needles into my wrist.

"Good luck, Davis," He whispered so quietly, I would have thought I was hearing things, had I not seen his lips moving.

"We'll be entering my dream, Arthur," I heard Eames say next to me. I nodded slowly and closed my eyes when I saw Billy finish hooking up Kelly and Jonathon, and turn around to face the PASIV. A few seconds passed before I heard the _woosh_ of the activation trigger, and felt the somnacin enter my arm, cold as ice. Then, I felt my muscles relax, and I slipped into the drug-induced sleep.

0-0-0-0-0

_I blinked._

_The light around me was so blinding, my arm instinctively rose to shield my eyes. Warmth enveloped my limbs as my sight adjusted, and I started to make out my surroundings. I was standing on a beach in the middle of the day. All around me, projections frolicked and lounged on towels._

_The cool wind whipped at my hair, which hung over my forehead, brushing at my eyelids and free of any styling gel. Looking down, I wiggled my bare toes in the white sand and silently thanked Eames for not dressing me too horribly. I wore jeans rolled up, so as not to get them sandy, and a lightly checkered button down flannel shirt._

"_Arthur, come here," I heard a voice call. Turning around and searching the flurry of people, I rolled my eyes when I spotted the Brit standing under a wooden gazebo in khaki shorts and a pale pink button down, open to reveal his tattooed chest. Next to him sat Jonathon and Kelly around a table, dressed identically in dark jeans and white button down shirts._

_Begrudgingly, I made my way through the projections to the three other men, who all were sipping drinks._

"_Here, darling. You seemed like a dry martini kind of man." Eames handed me the drink garnished with an olive._

"_I appreciate the setting Eames. However, I doubt we'll get anything done amongst all these distractions," I looked over and raised my eyebrows when a few giggling women in bikini's walked by, waving to us. I looked back over to Eames, who ignored the women, instead keeping his eyes on me._

_Jonathon laughed and sipped his drink, "This is going to be your first challenge Arthur. Trust me; there will be more distractions than this when we complete the job."_

"_Challenge?" I raised an eyebrow._

"_Ah, yes. How well you will be able to act in emergency situations," Eames explained, leaning forward. "You see, my subconscious isn't very aware that I have intruders in my mind at the moment. But, say you do something… Sudden,"_

_I stared, confused, at the Brit, before I finally realized what he was getting at. Before I could react, Eames stood up abruptly and grabbed me, yanking me up from my chair. I retaliated quickly by shoving the man as hard as I could, sending him backwards to crash against a wooden beam of the gazebo._

_The audible 'thud' echoed loudly, and suddenly, everything grew quiet. Looking around, I felt my mouth go dry when I realized that every projection on the beach had gone silent, and was staring at me with a murderous expression._

_Eames' subconscious knew I was the intruder now._

_Turning on my heel, I sprinted past Kelly and Jonathon, jumping down from the gazebo and running as fast as I could through the thick sand._

_Screams and yells echoed through my ears as I heard the crowds of projections chase after me. My heart pounded rapidly as I grew closer and closer to the small beach town ahead of me. I winced once my bare feet hit the gravelly pavement, but the adrenaline was pumping through my veins way too quickly for me to even slow down. Rounding a corner, I spotted a neighborhood and ran up to the first house I could reach, grabbing the door handle and yanking._

_I nearly cried in relief when I discovered that the front door was open, and I fell through into the small beach house, deciding it wouldn't matter if there were people who lived here, since it was only a dream._

_Slamming the door shut, I locked it tight and collapsed onto the wooden floor, panting harder than I ever had in my life. For a moment, I sat there, breathing as steadily as I could and trying to catch my breath, before I finally stood up and smoothed my clothes out, brushing sand from my sleeves and running a few fingers through my hair._

_I slowly made my way down the main hallway, not making a sound. Finally deciding that there was nobody home, I relaxed, and turned around, only to bump into a solid form. Yelping in surprise, I jumped back and quickly blurted out an apology before I looked up into the face of Eames._

_I paused and frowned, brushing aside the thought of how he was able to find me so quickly, "Thanks a lot asshole, I nearly got killed there,"_

_Eames stared at me with a hard dark expression, his mouth forming a straight line. He looked dead serious. Totally unlike himself._

"_Uh, hello?" I repeated, waving my hand in front of his face. "Eames?"_

"_My name's not Eames," He spoke with a voice much deeper and grittier than I had been expecting, "I see we haven't met yet. I'm Jack,"_

_I stared at the man for a moment, not knowing what to say. Was he joking around or something? I focused on his face, going over every detail of his stubbly jaw line to his full lips to his cocked eyebrow to his-_

"_What are you doing in William's mind?" the Brit spoke dangerously, a glint of anger sparking in his brown eyes… Wait a second… Brown eyes? Eames had green eyes…_

_My jaw dropped as I let out a gasp and stumbled backwards. I had read about this disorder in dream theory books back before I became a Deputy. People who were mentally unstable could have a "shade", or a subconscious figure that destroys intruders and dominates the person's thoughts and mind. This projection of Eames must be his shade…_

"_I asked you a question, Arthur," Jack took a step towards me slowly, baring his teeth like a wild animal. "Why… Are… You… Here?" with each word, he came closer and closer to me, his voice getting lower and his eyes getting darker._

_I swallowed thickly and whirled around to make a break for it, but Jack grabbed me by the hair, earning a pained yell from my lips. He pulled hard, sending me toppling backwards and landing on the wooden floorboards with an audible 'thud'._

_Before I could realize what was happening, Jack was on top of me, hand around my throat, closing off my air, and mouth against my ear growling: "I'm going to rip you limb from limb. You shouldn't be here; this is our mind, get out of our mind, get out, get out, GET OUT!"_

_I screamed as he dug his nails harder into the skin on my neck, crushing it in his strong hands effortlessly. Lights dancing in front my eyes as I gasped for air and the feeling of not having oxygen became too unbearable. My hands grabbed at Jack's, desperately trying to loosen them up, but they were like two steel traps clamping down on my throat, lifting me off the ground by my neck._

"_I'm going to kill you Arthur," I heard Jack whisper callously, locking eyes with me before he pulled his hands away, placing one under my neck and one over my forehead, and jerking my head all the way back with a sickening 'crunch'._

0-0-0-0-0

I woke up in a mad fit. My arms were flailing uncontrollably, swatting at some invisible person who had been hurting me. My throat was raw from screaming as my eyes flew open and I gasped for air like a drowned animal.

"Arthur… Arthur!" I heard Billy yell, and suddenly there were arms around me, holding me down and removing the IV from my wrist. "You're awake!"

My head thrashed as I remembered those dark, murderous eyes, and those cold, strong hands around my throat, squeezing the life from me.

"Arthur!" Billy cupped my face, holding it still and looked into my eyes, "Look at me. You are fine. Nothing's wrong, you're not dead. You're in the warehouse and you're safe. Trust me."

I stared wildly into his eyes for a moment before I looked past his face at Kelly and Jonathon who were still asleep on the chairs. Relaxing noticeably, I sank back against the lawn chair and exhaled the breath I had been holding in, finally realizing I was back in reality. Slowly sitting up, I looked over at Eames who was soundly asleep, unaware that his shade had killed me in the dream.

"What _happened_?" Billy asked me, looking between Eames and me.

"Jack," was all I could get out, biting my lip and turning away from the sleeping man. I reached into my pants' pocket and pulled out my totem, checking the ticking hands to make sure they were ticking anti-clockwise.

"Oh _shit_," Billy hissed, and I jerked my head around to look at him.

"How come Eames never told me he had a shade?" I shook my head and glared up at Billy, who had a horrified look on his face.

"Shit," he cursed again and stood up, walking over to the PASIV. I followed and looked down at the timer. There was about a minute remaining on the LED timer.

"Billy, _tell me_. Who is Jack?" I grabbed the man's shoulders firmly and looked him in the eye.

"Let's… Let's wait until Will wakes up." Billy bit his lip uncertainly. "He needs to be the one to tell you."

I frowned, but nodded my head and sat back down on my chair, rubbing my throat just to double check that there were no welts. I could still feel his hands around my neck…

"Arthur, where did you find him?" Billy approached me again.

"In a house. His projections were chasing after me, so I ran up to the first beach house I could reach and hid in it. I thought I was alone until he appeared. Of course, I thought it was Eames at first, but then I noticed it was different… His eyes. They were dark and cold. Then I knew that it wasn't Eames. He said his name was Jack… and then he told me to get out. He said 'get out of our head' and attacked me. He was strangling me, choking the breath form my lungs. And then…" I swallowed hard and continued, "He snapped my neck. And then I woke up."

When I had finished, I expected Billy to say something, but there was only silence. I looked up to see Billy staring at me with another horrified expression, his eyes darting over to my left.

I looked over to see Eames' eyes flutter open, and look over at Billy and me.

"Arthur," he murmured and sat up, looking at me, confused. I heard Kelly and Jonathon stir next to us, but I kept my eyes on Eames'.

"Boss, we've got a major, major problem." Billy said fearfully.

Eames looked confused, then scared and looked at me. "Arthur, where did you go?"

I stared deep into his eyes, relaxing at the sparkling green color and began, "Jack killed me."

Eames visibly tensed at the name, his face frozen with an expression of shock before he looked up at Billy. "Dear God,"

"I told you," Billy hissed, standing up, "I _told_ you this was going to be a bad idea! Why didn't you tell Arthur? Now the whole job is in danger!"

"I thought he was gone for good!" Eames yelled and stood up, glaring angrily at Billy. I looked over at Kelly and Jonathon who looked at me with confused looks.

"Well he's back now, so that means were all fucked." Billy snapped and looked back at me. "Jack's after Arthur. He's already destroyed him once."

"Shut up! Just let me think," Eames rubbed his temples with his fingers and exhaled sharply.

"Eames," I spoke firmly. "Who the _hell_ is Jack?"

Eames looked up at me, contemplating what to say, until he finally sighed and walked over, sitting on the lawn chair next to me. "I have something to tell you. Actually the whole team," he looked over at Kelly and Jonathon.

He exhaled again, clearly trying to find the words to begin his story. "Jack… isn't a shade. He's-" Eames paused and looked up at Billy, not sure what to say. Billy nodded encouragingly. "I have something called MPD. Multiple Personality Disorder. I've had it since I was teenager. It began when I would get upset in school, and I'd get into rough fights with other boys my age. However… when I fought, it wasn't me. It was Jack."

Eames looked up at me cautiously, looking for signs of recognition in my face. I crinkled my brow in confusion, still not understanding.

"Jack is my… alternate personality. He's the person inside my head that takes over my thoughts and my mind when I get upset. I can't help it. It's like I'm literally a different person." Eames was struggling with his words. "I thought Jack was gone for good. He hasn't appeared in nearly ten years."

"What happened the last time he appeared?" I asked firmly.

Eames hesitated, looking down at his hands, which fumbled with the hem of his shirt. "Well that's a whole different story."

"Tell me." I insisted. "Eames, if you're going to make this job work, the whole team needs to know _everything_ that could possibly endanger the job."

Eames straightened up and exhaled, beginning his story, "Yes alright. I'll tell you. But know that the only other people who know about this are Bill and Daniel. It's difficult for me to talk about it… So bear with me."

Kelly and Jonathon nodded and I kept my eyes locked on Eames'.

"My first dream job took place in London. I was seventeen. Because I was so adequate at forging, I easily got hired for a huge job with many people on the team. One of the men, the Architect, was an American. Well to make a long story shorter, I'll just say that we fell in love. I moved to America with him. I thought we were going to live long happy lives, working in the dream field as a pair. Until…" Eames sighed and I could detect tears collecting at the corners of his eyes. "I found out about his wife and child."

A tear dripped down Eames' cheeks as he blinked and looked up at me. I remained silent.

"Anyways, I left. Flew to Vegas. That's where I met Bill," Eames motioned to the man. "We continued dream work. He was the first person to know about Jack. At this point in my life, I could control when Jack came out, and when I could keep him in. I really only brought him out when we were robbing banks, doing other criminal activity, because I knew that _I_ wouldn't be strong enough to do it. Jack has a sort of unbridled temper that works well for doing that sort of thing, but it became a problem when I couldn't put him away anymore."

"Jack would be in control for days," Billy commented softly. "I knew that if I said something wrong or out of place, Jack would kill me for sure. He didn't care if I meant anything to Eames. And that's why Jack is so dangerous. He doesn't care."

"Exactly. I knew I couldn't have him come out anymore. So I made a deal with him," Eames continued. "I told him he could come out one last time and seek revenge on the man who had lied to me. Ryan, was his name. I promised Jack he could do anything he wanted to Ryan, but then he would have to go away for ever."

I stared at Eames in shock. What he was saying sounded ridiculous, making deals with himself, or at least a part of himself. But it was real. Jack was real. I had seen him with my own eyes in Eames' mind.

"So Billy and I flew back to the East Coast. It wasn't hard to find Ryan. He was living with his family, who were still blissfully unaware that I had been with him." Eames paused, wiping his eyes and looking up at me. "When Jack comes out, I don't remember anything that I do. I have to rely on what other people tell me happened. And what Jack tells me. But Jack is like my own personal enemy. So I don't always trust him to tell me the truth. When I woke up a few hours later, lying in a pool of blood, I looked around and saw Ryan and his whole family, their brains blown out across the floor, and a gun in my hand. I panicked and fled. That night, Jack told me everything that had happened. And I'm still not sure to this day if he had been lying to me or not..." Eames shook his head. "Nevertheless, I thought he was going to be gone forever after that. But he's back." Eames looked me in the eye. "He's back, and apparently, he wants to destroy you."

X-X-X-X-X

_I've been taking chances,_

_I've been setting myself up for the fall,_

_I've been keeping secrets,_

_From my heart and from my soul._

_Going from row to row, back to back,_

_Lover to lover, and black to red_

X-X-X-X-X

Disclaimer: I don't own Inception. All rights reserved to Warner Brothers.

**A/N: Cliffhanger! Thank you so much for reading! I know this chapter might have been a bit confusing, with the introduction of Jack and the explanation of the job and also the introduction of Jonathon and Kelly. If there are any questions, let me know and I will best explain them!**

**Thanks to my Beta, Bethany Ruth, for fixing all my grammar mistakes etc.!**

**Also, thanks to thisisforyou for actually giving me the idea for Jack!**

**And fyi, I will be updating once a week, kind of like a T.V. show. Have a lovely day! :)**


	7. Chapter 7

**Warnings: Language, violence, and drug references**

_All alone, it was always there you see._

_And even on my own, it was always standing next to me_

_I can see it coming from the edge of the room_

_Creeping in the streetlight_

_Holding my hand in the pale gloom_

_Can you see it coming now?_

_I think I'm breaking down again_

X-X-X-X-X

Chapter 7: Breaking Down

_**Eames**_

"Bill," I snapped my fingers before Arthur could say anything, "Come over here. We're going to talk to Jack."

Billy nodded and lay down on the lawn chair next to me.

"Whoa, whoa, wait. You're going back to the dreamscape?" Arthur stood up suddenly.

"Yes. I need to confront him. He can't fucking do this to me right now." I growled, fastening the IV in my arm and making sure Billy had his in.

"Let me come with you." Arthur reached for an IV from the PASIV, but I stood up and grabbed him by the shoulders, pushing him back a few steps.

"No," I spoke firmly, looking him in the eye, "Jack will destroy you. He wants you out of my head, for some reason, and I need to find out why. You need to stay here."

"But I want to talk to him. I could probably convince him to leave you alone, please," Arthur tried to argue, but I had already made up my mind.

"No. You're not going Arthur. That is final. So help me, if you even touch that device after we've gone under…" I trailed off, not really sure what I would threaten him with. I wouldn't be able to hurt him, even if I tried "Same goes for you two," I pointed to Jonathon and Kelly.

Jonathon sighed and stood. "Fine then. But if you don't mind, Mr. Eames, we're going to head into town to get some lunch."

I nodded and looked back to meet Arthur's eyes.

Arthur stared at me defiantly, but reluctantly nodded his head. "Fine." His finger hovered over the activation trigger as I lay down in the chair next to Billy and relaxed my muscles. "Good luck," Arthur said quietly, and pressed the button, letting out a loud _woosh_ as the somnacin flowed into my arm.

O-O-O-O-O

_We sat at an indoor bar, surrounded by rowdy men and women, while televisions played obnoxious commercials. I looked around for any sign of Jack, but I already knew he wouldn't be in here. Billy sat next to me sipping a gin and tonic and watching the football game on the telly._

"_Let's go," I murmured to him before turning around and slamming down a crumpled bill on the bar, not even looking to see which one it was. It wouldn't matter anyway._

_Billy nodded and got up from the bar, following me out into the cold winter air. Around us, snow flurried and stuck to our eyelashes as we made our way down the slippery street._

"_Do you know where he is, boss?" Billy asked behind me, struggling to keep up with my long quick strides._

"_He's going to be in Ryan's apartment." I said through clenched teeth, blinking constantly to rid my lashes of snow._

"_How do you know?" Billy asked._

"_Because that's where I left him." I answered quietly as the snow became thicker underneath my feet, "Bill, I need you to pull me out if things get too dangerous. Jack is going to try to trap me here. He wants me to stay in the dream so he can dominate my mind. We can't let that happen. If I wake up and Jack is in control, he'll kill Arthur in reality. Understand me?"_

"_Yes Will." Billy answered. He only called me by my first name when we weren't around my other men. I found it rather endearing that he showed me that much respect._

_We trudged deeper into the dreamscape, buildings starting to look more and more familiar. I recognized the streets to replicate those of Boston, which was where I had lived with Ryan when we moved to America together. Pretty soon, we would be at our first apartment._

"_What if Jack kills me?" Billy asked worriedly._

"_He won't." I growled, taking the steps two at a time to the door of the building. "I won't let him."_

_Lowering my hand, I felt my totem in my pocket, making sure it was still there. This is my dream, and I wasn't going to let Jack take control of my mind after ten years of freedom._

_We entered the warm apartment building, silently entering the elevator and riding it to the very top floor._

_I tried to still my frantically beating heart with deep breaths, but I couldn't help the feeling. I hadn't talked to Jack in years. I was desperate to find out what he had against Arthur, although I had an idea in my head…_

"_Boss," Billy's voice snapped me out of my thoughts as I looked up and saw him standing outside the elevator, holding the door open for me._

"_Oh, sorry," I said and stepped forward, following Billy down the hall, finally reaching the room at the very end of the hall._

"_Ready?" Billy said quietly, hand over the handle._

"_Yes," I sighed and nodded, watching his hand turn the handle and push the heavy door open._

_I tentatively stepped over the threshold and entered my old apartment; the room noticeably colder than it had been in the hall. I heard Billy's cautious footsteps behind me as he closed the door and followed me down the hall._

_The living room was empty when I entered, and I looked over to the bedroom door, knowing that Jack was behind that door. Waiting for me._

"_Stay here," I turned around and told Billy. "I'll keep the door open, and just keep and eye and an ear out. He won't hurt me, I know that."_

_Billy didn't say anything; he simply nodded and swallowed hard._

_I turned back around and slowly made my way over to the bedroom door, which seemed to take an eternity. I didn't know what I would say when I saw Jack._

_My hand hovered over the door handle and I swallowed thickly before grabbing the handle, twisting, and swinging the door open in one fluid motion._

_There he was. Jack stood facing the large bay window on the left of the spacious bedroom. He stood tall, with shoulders back and head level, gazing out into the snowstorm._

"_Close the door, William." Jack murmured quietly, before turning and looking at me. I blinked, wanting to turn and run. I wasn't going to lie. Jack honestly scared the hell out of me. It was strange seeing a nearly exact image of yourself, only with a completely different personality. I reached behind me without taking my eyes off Jack's and pushed the door shut behind me._

"_Billy, is out there-" I began but was interrupted._

"_I know." Jack said calmly before slowly walking towards me._

_I tensed with each step he took towards me and spoke with a shaky voice. "Why did you kill Arthur?"_

_Jack's dark eyes flashed angrily when I said Arthur's name, but he grinned and reached out, grabbing me by the wrist. "Come and sit down. We're going to be here awhile."_

_I hesitantly followed, letting him drag me over to the bed and sat down beside him. "Answer me,"_

"_But, darling," Jack leaned in closely, his face hovering in front of mine, "You already know,"_

"_I want to hear it from you," I growled, staring into those dark eyes. "Say it."_

"_As you wish," he smirked, reaching up and stroking my chin, "I am jealous of him, if that's what you want to hear. You have no idea how frustrating it is when I have to sit up here tucked away in your mind, while listening to your near constant thoughts of the man."_

"_You promised," I snapped, swatting his hand away, "You promised you would never come out again after…"_

"_After what… This?" Jack waved his hand and motioned to the left. I looked over and choked when I saw Ryan's body soaked in blood, inches from us on the ground._

"_Stop it!" I hissed, turning my face away from the bloody display._

_Jack sniggered, "You're so weak… You always have been. The only reason you ever brought me out was to do all the dirty criminal deeds because you wouldn't be able to do them yourself. Admit it, William. You're a coward. A stupid, queer, coward," His words grew more and more bitter, and I felt myself shaking my head._

"_No!" I shouted, standing up from the bed. "I'm not weak! I was able to carry on for ten years without you! I didn't need you!"_

"_But now you need me again," Jack stood up as well, his eyes growing darker and more angry. "You don't know it, but you need me. To get rid of Arthur. He's only going to break your heart again William. Just like Ryan. Why would Arthur ever love you? He never will. And you're getting too far in with your emotions for him. I have to get rid of him before it's too late."_

"_NO!" I yelled, pushing Jack with both hands. He nearly laughed bitterly._

"_You love him. It's so fucking pathetic. You're like a thirteen year old girl," Jack sneered and grabbed my arms in an iron-like grip._

_I growled and tried to pull away, but he was unbelievably strong. Jack stared into my eyes, jerking me around and throwing me onto the bed. He straddled my waist and I tried to push him off of me._

_Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a pair of sliver gleaming handcuffs, "It's okay, William. You're going to stay here, while I go and take care of Arthur in reality. Then it will all be over," Jack grinned wildly, opening the handcuffs and slipping one onto my wrist._

"_NO!" I screamed, "Get off!"_

_Jack laughed evilly and was about to slip on the other cuff, when suddenly, a loud gunshot rang through my ears and I closed my eyes as a warm wave of blood spurted across my face._

_For a moment it was silent, and then I felt Jack's body shift forward and land on top of me. I gasped, tasting the blood on my lips and looked down at the hole that had been blown through the back of his head. The bullet had gone clean through his head and hit the headboard above me._

_I looked down at the bedroom door and stared when I saw Billy standing, holding the smoking gun in his hands._

"_Holy shit!" He gasped and ran forward, pulling Jack's lifeless body off me and watching as it tumbled to the ground._

_I pulled my hands down and looked at Jack lying on the carpet, shuddering at the sight. It was like seeing myself, dead. "It's not over. Just because we killed him in this dream doesn't mean he won't show up in others. He'll always be in my head,"_

"_We should go," Billy said quickly and slowly handed me the gun in his hand._

_I nodded, grasping the gun and lifting it to Billy's head, pulling the trigger and turning my face away to avoid another face full of blood. _

_Not wanting to watch Billy's body slump to the floor, I turned around and held the gun up to my head, looking down at a blood-soaked Jack before I cocked the gun and pulled the trigger._

O-O-O-O-O

My eyes fluttered open gently, and I looked over at Billy, who's eyes were also open and looking around. Next, I turned my head over to the PASIV device, and my heart nearly melted when I spotted Arthur sitting on the edge on a chair, looking at the timer on the PASIV, a worried look on his face.

I shifted, slowly bringing my back up so that I was sitting.

Arthur's eyes snapped up to meet mine once he heard me move, and he stood up and rushed over, ripping the IV form my arm. "How did it go?" he asked anxiously.

I wanted to laugh at his eager expression, which reminding me strikingly of a puppy dog, but I remembered what had just happened in the dream and I swung my legs over to make room for him, patting the seat for him to sit.

"I talked to him. Basically, the reason he is so keen on killing you, is because…" I trailed off, suddenly realizing that I couldn't tell Arthur the truth. I couldn't tell Arthur that Jack was jealous of my feelings for him, or the fact that Jack knew my feelings for him would never be reciprocated. "He… he thinks you're dangerous."

Arthur's brow furrowed in confusion and he pulled away, "Why would he think that?"

"He thinks you'll betray us, since you're not here by choice." I looked at Billy for a second, who was shaking his head disbelievingly. He could always tell when I was lying.

"But…" Arthur trailed off, looking past me, "Well he's right that my heart's not in the job. But that doesn't mean I won't do it. I'm not about to put Mal in danger for my own selfish reasons."

My heart twisted in guilt. Then, I did something that went against my every rule.

"Do you…" I began slowly, "Do you want to talk to her?"

Arthur's eyes lit up and he nodded eagerly. "Can I?"

"Yes, of course," I stood up and reached into my jacket pocket. "Bill, take Arthur down to the room."

Billy shot me a look of uncertainty, but did what he was told. I followed the pair out of the main room and down the long narrow hall to the locked door at the end, pushing the key into the lock and turning.

Arthur stood next to me, almost shaking in anticipation. I pulled away and motioned for him to open the door. He nodded and obliged, rushing into the poorly lit room to the sleeping form slumped on the floor.

"Mal," he shook the sleeping woman gently, waking her from her light slumber.

"Arthur?" she groaned and sat up, reaching up to touch his face, "Are you alright," her eyes flickered past Arthur and landed on Billy, and me "Have they hurt you?"

"No, no. They're not going to hurt us. Trust me, Mal," Arthur comforted her gently. "He's going to let us go in a few weeks. You have to trust me when I tell you that everything's going to be fine."

Mal started to whimper, tears streaming down her pretty face while she lowered her head.

"Mal look at me," Arthur lifted her chin with his finger, "Do you trust me?"

She nodded her head and blinked, letting a few more tears fall before she wiped them away and kissed Arthur gently on each cheek. "Will I see you again?"

Arthur turned and looked at me, silently passing the question on to me.

"Once a day, pet," I murmured, "No longer than ten minutes. We need to get the job done,"

Arthur nodded and turned back to Mal, "How does that sound?"

Mal half-smiled through her look of dismay, "I miss Dominic. And our children. More than words can describe,"

"I know," Arthur nodded, "He's still looking for you. But he's hanging in there. I promise you,"

Mal whimpered again, trying not to let herself cry again. "Alright. I trust you Arthur." Then she leaned in close to Arthur and whispered something not audible to Billy or me.

Arthur pulled her in for a loving embrace before he pulled away and stood up, walking back towards the door. "I'll be back tomorrow," he assured her before stepping out of the room and letting me shut and lock the door.

"She's so weak," Arthur murmured, "How often do you feed her?"

"Three times a day," I sighed, "However, I don't check to see if she actually eats the food we bring her. It's nothing bad, usually just whatever I have my men pick up from the restaurants in the town a couple miles down."

Arthur snapped his head up and met my eyes "Well maybe if you didn't have her locked up in a room twenty-four hours a day," he spoke bitterly.

My mouth dropped open at the jab and I retorted, "Well what am I supposed to do? Let her roam free outside so she can get away?"

"Well you could at least let her out of the room for a little," Arthur replied, his voice becoming more and more accusatory.

"No. Absolutely not," I shook my head, "She can't have that much freedom around you. She just _can't_,"

"Why not?" Arthur raised an eyebrow.

"Because she's the only thing keeping you here!" I snapped, raising my voice louder than I had meant to. "If she and you escaped, then this job would be screwed!" I continued, my voice still bitter with rage, "Don't you understand? This job needs you… _I_ need you,"

"Well, screw the job!" Arthur yelled back, "Just tell Jonathon that you quit. Do you actually agree with what we're going to do? Brainwashing political leaders of _entire_ _countries_ for the selfish reasons of another rich businessman so he can continue to dominate his country's wealth?"

"Look, it's not a matter of what I agree or disagree with. It's not that simple," I shook my head.

"Then what is it?" Arthur threw up his hands in frustration. "Why do you _have_ to do this job?"

I bit my lip, thinking of the words to say, but I realized I didn't really have a solid reason. Was it money? I didn't care about the money. I didn't _need _the money. I sighed and spoke, "Jonathon is a close friend, and I can't let him down. I know you're close to Cobb, so wouldn't you do the same for him?"

Arthur nodded slowly. "Well I suppose that's understandable… That still doesn't make it right though."

"Do you think I even know the boundary between right and wrong anymore, darling?" I asked sarcastically. It was silent for a moment, and then we both jerked our heads over when we heard the front door of the warehouse open. Down the hall, I watched Jonathon and Kelly enter the warehouse, carrying brown paper bags. They disappeared from sight, and I cleared my throat.

"We continue with your training. However, we won't go into my head. If we go into someone else's mind, I will have much more control over Jack. We won't stumble into him and I'll keep you by my side at all times." I turned my head back to meet Arthur's concerned eyes. "Do you trust me?"

"Of course not." He spoke plainly. "I don't trust you at all. You're a filthy, lying, cheating, criminal, whether it's your fault or not. But I don't have a choice."

I nearly laughed at the moody expression he wore and reached out, pulling Arthur against me and wrapping my arms around his thin frame. Surprisingly he didn't push me away, and I allowed myself to kiss him gently on the neck. It was slight, I barely even touched his skin, but I could feel the contrasting emotions in his body against mine. His arms were rigid, like he didn't want to give in to the contact, but he arched his neck ever so slightly to give me access to the skin, barely even noticeable. But I noticed it.

Arthur was giving in to me. Soon, he would be putty in my hands.

"Ahem," I heard a deep voice from the end of the hall. Immediately, I released Arthur, and he jumped away from me as if he had been electrocuted. I looked to see Kelly and Jonathon standing at the opposite end, suspicious looks of their faces.

"Are we ready to continue gentlemen?" Jonathon asked, motioning to the lobby.

"Uh, yes. Let's go," I motioned for Arthur to follow me, and he obliged, his cheeks still flushing red from my previous actions.

O-O-O-O-O

For the rest of the day, we safely trained Arthur in Kelly's dreams, getting him used to the feel of the dream world and making him more apt at running from projections and navigating the mazes. Of course the mazes that Kelly had been constructing were very basic, Arthur was picking up on dream work again very quickly, and I was beyond pleased.

There were many moments when I could feel my mind growing weak from Jack trying to make an appearance, but I was able to stay focused and lock him away in my mind. However, I knew that once we started bringing in more factors to the dreamscape, it would get harder and harder for me to control Jack.

After Jonathon felt that Arthur had had a sufficient amount of training, he decided to call it a day, even though it was only five o' clock.

"Hungry darling?" I asked Arthur as he wound up the IV lines back to the PASIV device.

"Actually, yes." He nodded and closed the case.

"I'll take care of that," I motioned for him to step away from the silver case. "Go and rest. I'll have Daniel pick up a pizza or something."

"Tell your men thank you for everything, Mr. Eames," Kelly walked past us smiling, and followed Jonathon out of the warehouse, leaving me and the Point Man alone in the large room.

"Daniel!" I called loudly. The young man appeared from the kitchen almost immediately like a loyal servant. "Could you go pick up some food? Mr. Arthur is hungry."

Danny rolled his eyes, but followed my orders and exited the warehouse, keys in hand.

"And you're not?" Arthur snapped, "We went into the dreamscape about twenty times. I've forgotten how tiring this stuff is."

"You'll get used to it," I shrugged, and picked up the PASIV device, entering it into the large safe in the back of the warehouse.

The entire time I moved back and forth, shuffling the lawn chairs into order and putting away papers and documents, I was well aware that Arthur was watching me."Like what you see?" I asked coyly, and turned to meet his gaze.

He immediately moved his eyes away, and I detected a light flush in his cheeks. It was fucking adorable how easy it was to embarrass Arthur.

"Why do you get so worked up all the time, dear?" I slowly made my way over to where he sat and watched him intently.

"Why do you insist on bothering me all the time with your ridiculous pet names?" Arthur snapped back, standing up and making to leave the room, when I grabbed him by the arm and whirled him back around.

"You love it," I sniggered. The furious look that Arthur gave me was begging to make me happy… in more than one way.

Arthur's mouth opened to retort, but I didn't want to hear him utter any more arguments, so I did something I had been aching to do in reality. I kissed him boldly on the lips, making him fall silent.

His reaction was both expected, and amusing. Raising a hand above his head, he brought it down and slapped me clean across the cheek with a strength I would not expect to come from such a skinny man.

"What the _hell_ is wrong with you?" Arthur stuttered, his cheeks now blushing a furious red color. "Touch me again, and so help me, I will _murder_ you." His eyes darkened in all seriousness, and I couldn't help the grin spreading across my now aching face. I wondered how distinct the handprint on my face would become.

Before I could say anything in response, Arthur turned and ran from the room, like a rabbit fleeing from a wolf. A very turned on wolf.

O-O-O-O-O

That night, I entered our room to find Arthur lying on our cot, his shirt unbuttoned to reveal his plain white wife beater underneath.

He looked at me apologetically as I rubbed my still-sore cheek. Shaking his head, he took a deep breath and spoke, "I'm sorry 'bout your cheek. I overreacted."

"It's fine," I smiled at his guilt and decided to give him a right tease, "You know, if you kiss it, maybe it will feel better."

His head snapped around and his eyes met mine with a fiery glare. "Don't push it, Eames."

"Just teasing, darling. God, you never can take a joke." I shook my head and made my way over to the cot slowly, sitting beside the Point Man. I looked down and noticed he was fidgeting with the hem of his open shirt. "Hey, do you want to borrow some clothes? I completely forgot you haven't changed in a good twenty four hours."

Arthur looked up at me cautiously and mumbled, "Could I?"

"Of course," I exclaimed, standing up and walking over to a thrashed wooden bureau on the other side of the room. "Here. You can wear these sweats to bed. Tomorrow, just pick out whatever you wanna wear. Oh and the bathroom's down the hall to the right if you wanna shower and change, or whatever."

I tossed a pair of black track pants to Arthur, who caught them and stood up. "Thanks." He paused for a moment and looked up at me. "You going to bed?"

"Yeah. I'm knackered." I sighed and rubbed my forehead. "Just shut off the light when you're coming back in."

Arthur nodded in understanding.

"Oh and don't try to sneak out. Daniel and Billy stay up all night on watch." I said warningly.

"Mr. Eames, trust me. I'm not going anywhere unless it's with Mal." Arthur raised an eyebrow.

I believed him. Arthur was such a good and loyal friend, it was really quite admirable. "Well. Have a good shower, pet,"

"Thanks," Arthur mumbled and trudged over to the door, before stopping and turning back around to face me. "Is it… _hard_ to live with… You know. Having Jack in your head?"

I looked at him a few moments before the words formed in my head and I spoke, "I'm used to it. Trust me. You learn to control it, and once you do, it's only a matter of keeping your emotions under control. Jack only comes out when I get really, extremely upset. And trust me; _I_ don't get upset very easily."

Arthur nodded, "You know… I misjudged you. Back in the interrogation room, I thought of you as some cold-hearted criminal, who didn't give a fuck about how many people he killed, or hurt, or stole from. But I had no idea about Jack. And I see now how much you have to go through with him. And I'm sorry."

I swallowed and looked into Arthur's soft brown eyes, fighting the urge to run over and pull the man into an embrace. It was almost shocking to hear the words coming form Arthur's mouth, but in a way, it was oddly comforting, knowing that my 1 in a million chances of being with him were now lowered to 1 in a hundred thousand. Maybe, just maybe… This week would make my chances better. Because whether Billy, or Kelly, or Jonathon, or Daniel, or even Jack liked it or not, I was falling for Arthur. I was falling in love with his puppy dog eyes, and his porcelain skin, and his narrow chin, and his feisty personality, and his flushed cheeks, and his soft voice. I could finally admit it. I was falling in love with Arthur.

And it scared the hell out of me.

X-X-X-X-X

_All alone, on the edge of sleep,_

_My old familiar friend comes and lies down next to me_

_And I can see it coming from the edge of the room_

_Smiling in the streetlight_

_Even with my eyes shut tight, I still see it coming now_

_I think I'm breaking down again_

X-X-X-X-X

**A/N: Yay thanks for the awesome reviews again! I feel like this was my best chappie so far, but I could be wrong? Let me know what you think in the reviews! ;D**


	8. Chapter 8

**Warnings: Graphic sex, language, and violence**

_I would give all this and heaven too_

_I would give it all if only for a moment_

_that I could just understand_

_the meaning of the word you see_

'_Cause I've been scrawling it forever_

_but it never make sense to me at all_

X-X-X-X-X

Chapter 8: All This and Heaven Too

_**Arthur**_

I walked briskly down the hall to the bathroom, my heart still pounding from the conversation I'd just had with Eames. He'd had a strange look on his face, like he was fighting an internal battle, and, for a second, I feared his eyes would flash brown and it would be Jack standing before me.

However, the real reason I ran from Eames, was because I was beginning to let him into my head. I was beginning to tell him personal thoughts and feelings, and I had to force myself to remain as professional as possible.

I slammed the bathroom door shut behind me and began to strip off my old clothes, turning on the shower as hot as I could stand.

I remembered the feeling that racked through my body when his lips touched mine. It was like his lips were charged with an electric current, and he had shocked me. I knew it was already happening, that I was beginning to give in to him, but I still had hope that I could stop it.

Stepping into the shower, I stood underneath the hot stream for what felt like forever, before I finally scrubbed my hair with the generic brand shampoo and washed my body with the white bar soap. Stepping out of the shower, I frowned at my hair, knowing Eames would probably not have any gel to keep it slicked back how I liked it. Sighing and shaking my head, I towel dried my hair, letting it flop over my eyes. Giving an annoyed snort, I shook it a few times, freeing my eyelashes of the dark stands.

Next, I rummaged through the medicine cabinet, looking for any sort of mouthwash or toothpaste. I found an expired tube of mint toothpaste, and squirted some in my mouth, mixing it with water from the rusty tap to create a frothy minty liquid. After spitting, I looked up and pulled on the black track pants Eames had given me, pulling the string as much as I could, as they were too big on me.

I gathered my dirty clothes from the floor and exited the bathroom, making my way back to Eames' room as quietly as possible. Upon entry, I froze when I spotted Eames dozed off on the cot, wearing nothing but a pair of flannel pajama pants. I threw my clothes to the side and slowly made my way over, lying down next to the Forger, and shutting my eyes firmly.

I tried to subdue the thoughts whirling through my head, when suddenly, I felt Eames shift beside me, and roll over, his arm snaking around mine, and pulling it against his warm bare chest. I tensed, and opened my eyes, looking over to see the man still asleep.

I exhaled and shut my eyes again, trying to still my madly beating heart, and ignore how warm and soft Eames' skin felt against mine.

Slowly but surely, I felt my eyelids grow heavy, and my muscles relax, and I drifted into a deep sleep…

O-O-O-O-O

_I was standing in a night club with music pounding around me. I looked around for Ariadne or Cobb, or any familiar face in the sea of faces barely visible from the dimmed lights._

_I reached up to massage my temples, which were starting to ache from the insanely loud music, and whirled around again, almost running into a couple grinding on each other like horny teenagers at prom. I turned my lip up in disgust and turned around pushing through the crowd behind me._

_I froze when two hands snaked around my hips, pulling me back against a hard body._

"_Hello, Arthur. I've been looking for you," A familiar voice laced with a Spanish accent cooed into my ear over the pulsating music._

_I turned my head and looked over my shoulder to see Kelly Ortega behind me, his eyes gleaming lustfully in the dimly lit club. His arms tightened around me when I tried to pull away._

"_What are you doing?" I gasped, trying to wrench his hands from my hips, but his grip was too strong for me._

"_You look so adorable wandering through here. Like a lost puppy," he moved his face closer to mine, and I knew he was going to try to kiss me._

_I turned my face away and tried to wriggle out of his grasp yet again, but he merely laughed._

"_Mr. Ortega," I gaped at him, trying to find my words, "Let go of me!"_

_When he lowered his hands towards my crotch in response I lifted my arm to elbow him in the side, when all of a sudden, I felt him release my hips, and jerk backwards._

_I whirled around and watched someone pulled Kelly back and punch him square in the jaw, causing him to fall back. I stared at his motionless body on the floor of the club, my jaw open, and lifted my eyes to see my savoir. Eames stood in front of me, a determined look on his face, and his hand still curled into a fist._

"_What are you doing here?" I asked him meekly, waiting for him to answer. He said nothing, and instead, stepped forward towards me, pulling me against his body. I gasped in surprise at the feel of his rugged muscles against my chest._

"_Darling, let's go back to my hotel," Eames breathed quickly, lowering his hands suggestively to my ass. His gleaming eyes said it all._

_I shuddered at his touch and nodded, practically dragging him by his hand out of the club and into the chilly night air. I didn't know why I wanted Eames so badly at that moment. I knew I should hate him, and be disgusted at the thought of him touching me, but at that moment, my erection thought otherwise._

"_Right over there," Eames pointed across the street to the tall hotel building. I nodded and ran across the street with him, not even bothering to look both ways for cars._

_We stumbled into the empty lobby and onto the elevator, Eames slamming me against the wall and pressing his lips to mine frantically. I met his with equal enthusiasm, groaning against the feel of his half-hard cock through his trousers against mine. He thoroughly ravaged my mouth until we hit the very top floor, and stumbled out of the elevator, laughing and whispering dirty things in each other's ears until we finally reached what I assumed was Eames' room._

_While he fumbled through his jacket pockets, I grinned and touched his lower back, letting my hand slide down to his beautiful ass, and squeeze him hard. He jolted and laughed nervously, finally locating the card and opening the door rapidly, pulling me through._

"_Eager, aren't you?" He asked and shut the door behind us, grabbing my shoulders and pulling his mouth against mine yet again._

_I groaned in pleasure as he walked me backwards through the spacious suite and pushed me backwards onto the king-sized bed, crawling on top of me like some sort of crazed animal._

"_God, fuck me Will. Please, I want you to fuck me so hard," I was moaning under my breath as Eames hovered his body over mine, I could feel the warmth radiating between our trembling bodies. Eames' hand fumbled with the buttons of my shirt as he practically ripped the material from my body, his hungry eyes taking in my bare torso. Next, his hands flew to my pants, undoing the zipper and yanking them down my hips, along with my boxers. Now, I lay fully naked under Eames who was still fully clothed. I reached up to undo his shirt, when he reached up and stopped me._

"_Eames," I groaned, looking into his eyes, silently pleading._

"_I will, darling. But first…" Eames got a devilish glint in his eye and he got up from the bed, disappearing from the room. I looked around, urging him to come back quickly to tend to my hard cock._

_Eames entered again, his hands behind his back, and a naughty glint in his eyes._

"_What have you got there?" I asked coyly, willing Eames to hurry up and fuck me already, but he was making sure to draw this out as long as possible._

"_You'll see," Eames grinned and climbed back on to the bed, pulling his hands from behind his back to reveal two sets of silver, gleaming handcuffs._

_My mouth dropped open as he reached up and clasped one of my wrists in one pair, and cuffed it to the headboard. He did the same with my other arm, and I looked up at him, my mouth watering in anticipation._

"_Please…" I whined, looking Eames straight in the eye. "Will…"_

"_One more thing darling," Eames reached into his pocket, pulling out a black silk blindfold. I shuddered and exhaled as he reached down and tied the blindfold over my eyes, cutting off my vision completely._

_I tensed in fear, not knowing what to expect. At this point, I was completely at Eames' mercy. He could whip out a knife and murder me, or he could steal my wallet and flee the room, and I wouldn't know a single thing. However, at the same time, I was even more turned on at the thought of not knowing what would happen._

_Eames seemed to detect the tension in my body, because he chuckled and gently ran his hand down my chest, massaging my stomach in small circles with his thumb._

"_Relax darling. You have to trust me." He leaned up against my body and whispered in my ear, "Do you trust me?"_

_I paused and bit my lip, and then nodded._

"_Good," Eames cooed, and then got up from the bed._

"_Eames!" I called out, wanting to know where he had gone, my heart pounding in anticipation._

_I listened hard in the silence, and then heard a faint rustling of clothing. Eames must be undressing. I pulled at the handcuffs against my wrists', wishing I could watch Eames strip. I wanted to see his beautiful body, and memorize every square inch of it._

_I jolted when I finally felt fingers brush my hipbone, and run up my stomach, over my chest and rest on the bed above my shoulders. Next, another hand ran up my stomach, following the same pattern as the other hand and rested on the other side of my neck._

_I felt Eames's knees rest on either side of my hips. I pictured him hovering over my body like a lion about to devour its prey._

"_I want you," I let the words slip before I could stop them, and I heard Eames chuckle._

"_Shh. Be quiet." Eames cooed in my ear, before he took an earlobe between his lips and sucked._

_I opened my mouth in a silent cry and tried to buck my hips up to meet his, but Eames merely sat on my hips, his bottom resting comfortably underneath my throbbing cock. I felt his hardness brush against mine, and I shuddered again, cursing Eames to hell over and over for this tantalizing foreplay._

"_Eames please," I moaned._

"_Shh. Am I going to have to gag you as well?" Eames chuckled._

"_Eames, I swear to god if you don't fuck me right now, I will-" before I could finish the threat, his soft lips silenced mine in a passionate kiss, and I let his tongue slip into my mouth._

_For a few seconds, he explored my mouth hungrily, tasting my tongue and then kissing me once more on the lips before he moved to my chin, then my neck, trailing kisses down my front, until he reached my chest._

_Taking once nipple in between his full lips, I felt him suck, and I let a cry fall from my lips. He grinned against my skin and continued to tantalize the bud of flesh with his very skilled tongue. After a few seconds more, he moved to the other neglected one and gave it the same torture. The whole time I had my head thrown back, pleasured moans falling from my mouth like sweet prayers to the heavens._

"_God, Eames, that feels… oh god!" I choked when he bit the nipple in his mouth, almost hard enough to be painful, but enough to send another wave of pleasure to my leaking cock. I felt moisture drip on my leg from Eames' cock as he kissed his way down my ribcage._

_He paused over my stomach, sliding his tongue into my belly button and kissing it before continuing his trek down to my throbbing need._

_My breath hitched in my throat as Eames moved his mouth to the right and trailed kissed around my hipbone, torturously avoiding the place in which I needed his hot wet mouth._

"_Goddammit," I moaned when Eames slid his hands up my thighs and squeezed, pulling them apart ever so slightly._

_Cold air hit the spot in between my legs and I shuddered in anticipation as I felt Eames' warm breath hover over my penis._

"_Arthur. You are the most beautiful thing I've ever seen in my life," Eames murmured._

_I opened my mouth to say something in response but choked on my words when I felt Eames' hot mouth slide over my cock. My lips formed a silent 'O' of surprise as Eames' lips hit the bottom of my shaft and sucked very hard._

"_Fuck," I screamed as Eames began to move up and down, sliding his wet lips over my hard shaft and making soft wet noises that drove me insane._

_I had never felt anyone pleasure me to this magnitude. Sure I'd gotten sloppy drunk blowjobs from my "girlfriend" in high school, but this was unlike anything I'd ever felt. This felt so incredibly right. Like I would never need anything ever again, as long as I could feel Eames' hot mouth around me, sucking and sucking._

_My cock hit the back of Eames' throat and I let out another strained scream before Eames released my cock from his mouth and spoke, "Arthur. I'm going to fuck you now." It was such a short simple sentence. But when spoken in Eames' deep rugged voice, laced with his incredibly sexy British accent, I nearly came at his words._

"_Have you ever bottomed?" He asked again, and I wished I could see his beautiful face._

"_No," I said, trying to keep my voice from shaking._

_Eames tightened his grip on my upper thighs, and pulled them apart even more, opening me up for him to see. I whimpered as I felt him situate his arms in between my legs, and I wondered how he was going to prepare me._

_My questions were quickly answered when I felt a wet finger slide over my hole, swirling around saliva and making me twitch. I gasped when Eames poked his finger inside of me, entering it an inch, then two._

_It hurt. I wasn't going to lie, and I wasn't going to cover it up. A pain-filled cry left my lips as Eames pushed his finger in up to his knuckle._

"_Do you want me to stop?" Eames asked, sounding concerned._

"_No," I shook my head, "Keep going, please,"_

_Eames slowly pulled his finger out and pushed back in again, causing another strained cry to escape my lips. "Darling?" he asked._

"_Don't you dare stop!" I growled, pushing my hips down farther on his finger._

_He pulled out again, and this time, entered two fingers into me, earning another strangled gasp from my mouth. "God Eames that feels…" He hit my prostrate and I let out a deep moan._

_Eames pulled out, and I heard his spitting on his fingers, before entering me again, pushing his slick fingers far up into me. "Fuck," I cried again, pulling my hands against the handcuffs._

"_Good, darling?" Eames asked._

"_Yes, yes, keep going!" I urged him, responding when he spread his fingers opening me up even more. "Oh Lord…" I groaned and ground my teeth together._

_Eames removed his fingers from me, and I sobbed at the absence of contact, before I felt him shifting on the bed._

"_Will?" I asked quietly before I heard him speak._

"_You're ready," he whispered in my ear, and nodded quickly._

"_God, yes fuck me Will. Fuck me now," I whispered back. His hands found the back of my head, and began to unfasten the blindfold around my eyes, when suddenly-_

"_Wake up," Eames cooed into my ear, and I scrunched my eyebrows in confusion._

"_What?"_

"_Wake up, darling. Come on, get up!" He said louder this time._

_O-O-O-O-O_

"Darling, wake up!"

My eyes flew open, and I looked into Eames' blue eyes. He was lying next to me, his face hovering over mine.

My mouth was open and dry, probably from panting or screaming in my sleep.

"Are you alright?" Eames wore an expression of worry on his face. "You were screaming in your sleep… I was afraid you were having a nightmare… I'm sorry I woke you."

I groaned and sat up, placing my head in between my knees and trying to ignore the raging hard-on in between my legs. How the hell was I going to explain to Eames that the reason I was screaming was because I had been having a wet dream about him?

"Yeah it was just a nightmare." I mumbled, clambering up off the bed and practically stumbling over one of my shoes as I rushed from the room.

Entering the bathroom, I locked the door behind me and yanked down the front of the track pants I was wearing, staring angrily at my hard-on.

"Why?" I groaned and tried to erase the feeling of Eames' mouth around my cock from my mind. Instead, I pictured Kelly's creepy stare. I pictured my fake girlfriend from high school; the image of her drunk-puking in my car on grad night was still ingrained in my memory. I said the pledge of allegiance and sang "Twinkle Twinkle, Little Star", but none of my attempts worked to make my erection diminish.

I bit my lip and decided that the only way I was going to get rid of it fast enough was if I remembered my dream. I recalled the feeling of Eames running his lips across my skin, and the feeling of his rough finger pads on my hips, opening me up so that he could stick his wet fingers up my-

"Arthur!" there was a pounding on the door and I gasped and leaned over the toilet, grabbed my dick and stroking as quickly as I could.

"I'm fine! Just-just go away!" I yelled at Eames and pumped faster and faster, willing myself to finish so I could get rid the dream playing over and over in my head.

A few seconds later, I came. I clamped a hand over my mouth to keep myself from groaning out loud, just in case Eames was still hovering outside the bathroom door.

Cleaning myself, and flushing the toilet, I checked myself in the mirror to make sure I hadn't missed any spots. I turned and opened the door, to see Eames standing outside, a look of concern on his face.

"I'm fine." I said bluntly. "I was just… feeling a little sick."

"Did you throw up?" Eames asked worriedly.

"Yeah." I frowned and sighed, rubbing my forehead with my hands. "But I'm fine now," Did he not hear me groaning and jerking off in there?

"Let's get you ready," Eames reached out and touched my bare arm, making me jump. He quickly pulled away, looking shocked. "Sorry."

"Don't worry about it," I mumbled, not wanting to explain why I was so jumpy around him…

One hour later, I sat in the kitchen, fully clothed in Eames' attire. Everything was a few sizes too big, making me slightly disoriented, as fashion was important to me, but luckily, Eames let me chose what I wanted to wear. I quickly opted for the solid light blue oxford and grey trousers with a matching grey vest. It was the least patterned and obnoxious thing I could find in the dresser. Eames and I sat silently eating breakfast, which consisted of average coffee and berry scones.

"You want me to warm that up for ya?" Billy asked me, entering the kitchen yawning, wearing nothing but a pair of green boxer shorts.

"William!" Eames gasped when he laid eyes on the tired Irish man. "Get the hell out of here and put some goddamn clothes on for Christ's sake!"

"Why? I'm sure Artie doesn't mind, right?" Billy grinned at me, pouring himself a cup of coffee.

I rolled my eyes and shook my head, "It doesn't matter."

"See, Artie's cool," Billy grinned cockily at Eames and sipped the black coffee.

"We have guests coming anytime soon, so you better get your half-clothed arse out of here, or I'll beat it out!" Eames said firmly, sounding like a parent scolding their child.

"Fine, fine!" Billy lifted his hands and defeat and left the kitchen, chuckling under his breath, "prick,"

I laughed and took another bite of my scone. Right as Eames had predicted, a few seconds later, Jonathon and Kelly entered the kitchen.

"Good morning, gentlemen," Jonathon nodded to us and set his briefcase on the table. "Arthur, today is going to be your second and last day of dream training. You seem to be picking up on everything quickly, so starting tomorrow; we will go and start research."

I sighed and nodded, chewing on the bland currant scone before me. It was hard to keep food down when I knew I would be committing a serious criminal act in a few weeks. It was even more upsetting that I was becoming more and more okay with it…

"Ready, darling?" Eames leaned over my shoulder and asked in my ear. I flinched and moved away from him.

"Yes. Let's go," I quickly stood up and walked from the kitchen, not wanting to be so close to Eames any longer.

The PASIV and chairs were already arranged and ready in the main warehouse room, so all four of us took our seats and waited as Billy carefully hooked us up to the device.

"Whose dream are we going into?" I asked Jonathon.

"See if you can find out," He said, "It obviously won't be yours or Eames'. So that should narrow it down."

I nodded, sighed and leaned back as Billy finished Kelly's IV and walked over to the silver case in the center of the square.

"Good luck mates," Billy said cheerfully before pressing the activation trigger.

O-O-O-O-O

_The four of us sat around a table in a crowded restaurant. I looked around, admiring the Salvador Dali's hanging on the wall, and the Latin music being played by the guitarist on the stage._

"_Very nice, Mr. Ortega," I looked over at Kelly, who grinned back at me._

"_You pick up quickly, Mr. Davis," he swirled his wine in the glass and took a moderate sip._

_I quickly looked away to avoid his stare, still slightly creeped out by previous dream. Even though I knew Kelly was married with children, I couldn't help but remember the feeling of his hands moving on my hips…_

"_Arthur," Jonathon spoke clearly, looking over at me. "Please name to me the three major tactics used in warding off projections in the maze."_

_I quickly racked my brain, listing them off in order of when I had last encountered, "Uh, paradoxes, gravity shifts, and..." I trailed off, not knowing the final answer_

"_Eames, would you like to explain the concept of Mr. Charles?" Jonathon looked to the Brit who cleared his throat and leaned forward._

"_Gladly. This tactic is usually performed by the Extractor, who takes on the Mr. Charles persona, telling the subject that they are in fact asleep, and he believes that there are invaders trying to extract information from their mind. These "invaders" actually being the subject's projections, which will chase after the "invader" who is actually the Extractor, turning the subject against his or her subconscious. When performed correctly, the subject won't realize that Mr. Charles is a complete facade, and the people chasing after him or her are in fact his or her projections."_

_I nodded and remembered trying this once, and not having it work. It was a quite difficult tactic to pull off._

"_We are going to practice a Mr. Charles in a few days." Jonathon explained. "It is the most effective tactic, when pulled off correctly, because it gets you the closest to the subject, and it gets you on their side."_

_I nodded, "Who will we practice on?"_

"_Your first target of research's wife. The first lady." Jonathon spoke plainly, as if it were no big deal. "That is when we will be able to find out the most information about the president himself, so we can later incept his mind. Our main goal is to use different patterns in each of the leader's minds."_

"_Why?" I asked worriedly. This was starting to sound like even more work than I had anticipated._

"_If there is no pattern, there is no evidence that we were there. You follow?" Jonathon spoke and sipped his wine._

"_I see," I said quietly. _

"_Don't worry, darling. It sounds like a lot, but we will make it through." Eames squeezed my kneecap under the table, making me jump and knock over my wine glass and spill the dark red liquid across the white tablecloth._

"_Shit," I muttered and immediately dabbed the liquid with my napkin, but Kelly waved his hand stopping me._

"_Don't worry about it." Kelly leaned back and grabbed a hold of a passing waiter. "May we get a different table, please?"_

"_Of course," the projection nodded and motioned to a clean table next to us._

_We all got up and moved, me glaring at Eames the entire time in anger. He caught my eye and winked coyly, sending shivers down my spine and making my insides melt. What was it about this man that made me so jumpy?_

"_Are you ready Mr. Davis?" Jonathon asked me._

"_For what?" I looked up, making sure I was seated a good distance from the British nuisance beside me._

"_More agility training. Kelly will prompt a few of his projections to search for an invader, and they will start to search for us. Once you see them, we will work together to find Kelly's safe, which is somewhere in this building." Jonathon looked over to Kelly and nodded his head._

_Kelly nodded back and sat silently with his hands on the table, staring straight ahead. "Done." He stated shortly and looked at us._

_I turned and casually scanned the restaurant, searching for any projections that looked suspicious. After a few seconds, I spotted a tall brown-haired man, who stood at the threshold of the lobby, a wary look on his face._

"_That man," I spoke under my breath and slowly set my napkin down on the table in front of me, scooting back in my chair and standing up. "Ready to go?" I asked a little louder. Shooting another look over my shoulder, I noticed the projection staring straight at our table, his eyes wide and alert._

"_Yes, let's." Eames stood, along with Jonathon. Kelly remained seated._

"_Good luck, gentlemen," he smiled and sipped his wine again._

_We quietly left the restaurant through the back exit, into the large conjoined hotel lobby. I touched my pocket, reassured at the feeling of the gun there, and shot another look over my shoulder to see another man pursuing us from the back exit._

"_Split up," I hissed and took the elevator, slamming my fist on the very top floor button, while Eames turned to the right. Jonathon went to the left, and I watched from the closing doors as Kelly's projection sprinted, trying to make it into the closing elevator door. I debated whipping out my gun to take him out, but the gunshot would only draw more projections._

_My heartbeat increased as the man got closer and closer, and there was five inches of space left… then four then three…_

_The man let out a yell of frustration as he slammed against the elevator, and the doors shut with a quiet 'woosh'._

_I let out the breath I had been holding in, but was still on edge. If the projection went after Eames or Jonathon, then I would be on my own. And I was scared. I knew this was only a test, but the dreamscape still felt real._

_I paused and looked up at the numbers as the elevator slowly climbed to the top. I reached into my jacket and removed my gun, drawing it up close to my ear and then extending it to the doors, as the elevator finally reached the top floor and slowed._

_A brief second passed before there was a quiet 'ping' and the doors squeaked open. I inhaled, and rushed from the elevator, prepared for any projections that came my way._

X-X-X-X-X

_The heart is hard to translate_

_It has a language of its own_

_It talks in tongues and quiet sighs_

_and prayers and proclamations_

_In the grandest of great men_

_In the smallest of gestures_

_In short shallow gasps_

X-X-X-X-X

**A/N: Whoo it's been a while! Thanks for all the reviews, and I hope this chappie gets many more :) hope y'all are having a nice holiday… I don't know about you guys, but I don't get off for winter break until the week after. Ugh. So far away! But I will make it!**

**Please review, and thanks to my beta Bethany Ruth!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Warning: very, very graphic SEX, language, and violence**

**(Jesus, this chapter is long)**

**Since it's been awhile since the last update, here is a recap of the last chapter, which was Arthur's perspective in Kelly's dream:**

""_Split up," I hissed and took the elevator, slamming my fist on the very top floor button, while Eames turned to the right. Jonathon went to the left, and I watched from the closing doors as Kelly's projection sprinted, trying to make it into the closing elevator door. I debated whipping out my gun to take him out, but the gunshot would only draw more projections._

_My heartbeat increased as the man got closer and closer, and there was five inches of space left… then four then three…_

_The man let out a yell of frustration as he slammed against the elevator, and the doors shut with a quiet 'woosh'._

_I let out the breath I had been holding in, but was still on edge. If the projection went after Eames or Jonathon, then I would be on my own. And I was scared. I knew this was only a test, but the dreamscape still felt real._

_I paused and looked up at the numbers as the elevator slowly climbed to the top. I reached into my jacket and removed my gun, drawing it up close to my ear and then extending it to the doors, as the elevator finally reached the top floor and slowed._

_A brief second passed before there was a quiet 'ping' and the doors squeaked open. I inhaled, and rushed from the elevator, prepared for any projections that came my way."_

**Now this chapter switches back to Eames in Kelly's dream :) Enjoy!**

_When we first came here,_

_We were cold and we were clear,_

_With no colors on our skin,_

_'Till you let the spectrum in_

_Say my name, as every color illuminates,_

_We are shining and we'll never be afraid again_

X-X-X-X-X

Chapter 9: Spectrum

_**Eames**_

_Not bothering to look back, I ran through the first door I could reach, and found myself at the bottom of a staircase. Cursing my luck to the high heavens, I mustered up all the energy I could, and began running up the steps two at a time._

_I quickly shot a look downwards once I had ascended one whole flight, and was pleased to see that the projection was not following me… yet._

_But that meant that it was probably after Arthur or Jonathon. And who wasn't to say that there were five more projections waiting for me in the hallway. Approaching the door slowly, I pushed it open slightly, and looked down the hall both ways to see if there were any men._

_I was in luck._

_Turning back around, I ran up the next flight, and the next. Panting as I reached the third story, I peeked back into the hotel hallway, and entered when I found it empty._

_Walking quickly and silently, I made my way over to the elevator and watched as the light climbed the numbers all the way to the top of the hotel. Floor thirty-five._

"_Shit," I muttered. "That's a lot of fucking stairs."_

_Turning, I yelped and nearly whipped out my gun when I ran into a firm body, but Jonathon quickly grabbed me by the shoulders and held me steady._

"_Woah, woah," he calmed me and looked over my shoulder at the elevator. "Is that Arthur on the top story?"_

_I followed his gaze as the light which rested on floor thirty-five. "Yeah. Shall we take the lift?"_

"_No." Jonathon shook his head, "There's probably already projections up there waiting for him. I'll be surprised if he makes it. That's a major mistake he made. Projections are always drawn to elevators."_

_I swallowed and racked my brain for options. "What about a service elevator?"_

_Jonathon nodded "Follow me. I was lucky enough to stumble upon one. It does, however, only go to the thirtieth floor. We will have to climb the rest of the way." Jonathon turned and motioned me to follow him the way he came._

_We silently walked side by side down the hall, guns in hands, and constantly looking around and over our shoulders for projections. It was strange that we didn't see more. Kelly must have a very subdued subconscious._

_Finally reaching the small service shaft, Jonathon wrenched the doors open and motioned for me to get in first. I ducked my head and leaned against the far wall, feeling claustrophobic in the small space._

"_Going up." Jonathon murmured and punched the button for the thirtieth floor._

_For a minute or so, it was silent, until Jonathon spoke. "So. You and Mr. Arthur."_

"_Yeah?" I bit my lip, nearly forgetting that Jonathon and Kelly had walked in while I was… having a moment with Arthur._

"_Are you two…?"_

"_Fucking? No. I don't even know which team he plays for. But I'm not going to find out, because I'm keeping our relationship strictly professional. This is too big of a job to screw up. And trust me, I've had my fair share of screw-ups." I knew the words coming from my mouth were untrue, but I had to reassure Jonathon that I could do the job even if I did have feelings for Arthur._

"_I see. But what about Jack? You've had him under control for the past week, but once we go under for the job… I don't know. I worry, Will." Jonathon sighed as the elevator climbed sluggishly to the twentieth floor._

"_Trust me. I worry too. But I've been able to do it for years… so I don't doubt I will be able to keep him out again." I lied. In all truth, I was struggling at that very moment, trying to keep Jack locked in my mind._

_The service elevator finally dinged softly, as we reached the thirtieth floor, and Jonathon reached out to yank open the old doors. I stepped out into the hall first, gun pointed._

_We reached the staircase and steadily climbed the remaining five floors, leaving my heart pounding desperately both from the exercise and the nerves. Jonathon followed me close behind as I tentatively pushed open the door to the hallway. I was about to give the all clear, when a floury of motion alerted me from the corner of my left eye._

_Looking over, I lifted my gun frantically when I spotted a group of projections walking down the hall. There must have been four or five of them._

"_Shit!" I cursed and cocked the gun, firing at the men before they noticed me. "Jonathon!" I barked and felt the man lift his gun up to fire at the projections as well._

_All of the men fell dead to the carpet, allowing me to release a nervous breath I had been holding in. "Let's move quickly. The other projections probably heard that." I motioned Jonathon to follow, and we quickly avoided the fallen men and made our way down the quiet hall._

_We had been walking for a few minutes, not hearing anything in the eerie silence of the hotel hallway. My brain raced with thoughts, and I tried to tell myself that the reason we couldn't find Arthur was because he'd found the safe already._

_Suddenly, a familiar voice made me stop in my tracks, and turn to the right, looking at the door from where I had heard it. It was a muffled male voice, but it was loud enough and familiar enough to make my heart race and a bad feeling flood my veins and numb my skin like morphine._

"_Eames!" Jonathon hissed and I held up a hand, silencing him._

"_In here…" I stepped forward and warily touched the metal door handle, turning it slowly._

"_Wait, it could be a trap." Jonathon said quietly._

"_No. He's in here. Arthur's in here." I assured him and pushed open the door with a single, firm push._

_At first, I couldn't see anything, it was so bright in the hall, and the lighting in the room was much dimmer. I made out a male figure standing in the centre of the room, and let my eyes drift upwards to the face._

_Once my eyes had adjusted, and it registered in my mind who was standing in the hotel bedroom, my blood turn cold as ice, and my limbs locked into place._

_His familiar sea blue eyes bore into mine, more so than I remembered. His full pink lips and scrunched eyebrows were surrounded by creamy skin with a hint of dark stubble. He wore a black button up with black trousers, and looked at me knowingly, as if he had been expecting me._

_Ryan stood before me. A shadow of the man I had once loved, and let Jack kill. He looked as beautiful and vibrant as I remembered him to be. My heart stopped and I stumbled backwards._

"_William." He spoke softly. "You came back."_

"_No." I whispered firmly and shook my head. "You're not Ryan. You're just a shade. You're dead."_

"_Am I?" Ryan cocked an eyebrow, "Is that was Jack told you?"_

_To my left, I heard a soft 'click', and a door creak open. My head snapped over, and I felt my mouth go dry as I saw Jack step from the bathroom, a demonic grin plastered on his face. He stepped aside to reveal Arthur laying on the cool white tiles, gagged and hands tied behind his back. He wore a terrified expression, and began struggling when he saw Jonathon and I standing in the threshold of the hotel room. _

"_Eames, what's going on? Who is that?" Jonathon asked quietly, looking towards Ryan._

_Before I could answer, Jack moved out of the corner of my eye, and I yelped in surprise when I looked over to see him hold up a gun and pull the trigger._

"_NO!" I yelled after the gunshot echoed through my ears, and I felt Jonathon slump to the ground next to me._

_I knelt over the man, but it was too late. His eyes were blank and lifeless. Jonathon was no longer in the dream._

_My head snapped up to see Jack chuckling, replacing the gun in the jacket of his pocket._

"_Get the hell out of my head!" I yelled at the nearly identical image of myself, snarling in frustration when he simply shook his head and cackled._

"_William… I already made it clear that we have a problem that needs to be taken care of… right here." He motioned to Arthur on the bathroom floor._

"_No, you're not going to kill him." I clenched my jaw angrily, feeling the heat bubble up inside my chest._

"_Come on William. It will be easy. You just let me take over, and I'll do everything. Just like I did with him." Jack pointed menacingly to Ryan, who suddenly had a look of dismay on his face._

"_You let him kill me?" Ryan's eyebrows scrunched, and he took a step towards me._

"_Don't you dare try to make me feel sorry for you! You betrayed me!" I heard my voice crack, and tears gather in my eyes. "You fucking lied to me! You said you wanted to live your life with me, and only me, but you didn't even mean that! You already had a family…"_

"_I was going to leave them, William," Ryan came closer and closer to me. Out the corner of my eye, I noticed Arthur looking at me, a pained expression on his face. "I did love you… I still do. I will forgive you for what you did to me."_

_I bit my lip, locking eyes with him. I used to spend hours getting lost in those eyes. Ryan finally reached out and touched me on the arm, pulling me into his arms. "You can stay here with me," Ryan sighed and tightened his grip. "And I'll forget everything that you did to me. I will forgive you Will, because I love you. Say yes."_

_I let my eyes flutter shut, and I inhaled his Acqua di Gio cologne that always reminded me of him. I thought back to decades ago, when Ryan and I would go on midnight walks through Boston Common, hand in hand, talking about dream theories, and our planned future, which we would never get to live. I recalled the seductive eyes, which were crystal clear and so incredibly blue._

_Those eyes had once pierced into my very soul, and ravaged it, reducing me to an obedient and willing boyfriend, blind to the fact that the man behind those glorious eyes was a fake. An imposter to my feelings. A liar._

_Then, I pictured a different set of eyes. Dark brown with hints of gold, framed by soft brown locks. I remembered the warmth of Arthur's lips against mine, and the sting of his hand after he had slapped me. I remember teasing him incessantly, and watching the blush rise to his cheeks in embarrassment. I loved it. I love him. I love Arthur._

_My eyelids flew open, and I said it, firmly, and with determination. "No."_

_Ryan's body tensed around me, and I heard him speak in disbelief. "No?"_

_I pulled away and met Ryan's eyes. "You heard me. I'm done. Done with you, and Jack, and all the shit I've gone through all my life, having to deal with the guilt of knowing I have murdered innocent people. I won't come crawling back to you, because you're not real. You're just a representation of a fragment of my life that I wished I could forget, but wasn't ready to let go of. So this is it. I'm letting go of you Ryan. I loved you once, but you hurt me, so incredibly bad, and I would never go back to you, if you were still alive or in my subconscious. It's over between us. In dreams, and reality."_

_Ryan opened his mouth to utter something but before he could respond, I pulled out my gun, and pressed it against his chest, right above his heart. I closed my eyes tightly, and pulled the trigger._

X-X-X-X-X

I felt my eyes flutter open, and I groggily lifted my head, looking around as Arthur and Kelly awoke as well. Jonathon stood before the PASIV, fiddling with the timer.

"What happened?" I groaned, squeezing my eyes shut and opening them again, meeting gazes with Arthur.

"I stopped the timer early." Jonathon sighed.

I ripped the IV from my arm and sat up. "Why?"

"Because we're done. This is the second time that that damn subconscious of yours has made a mess of things, and I can't afford to have it screw up the job." Jonathon said very bluntly, pressing the button to contract all of the IV lines. I winced, but barely noticed as the needle was ripped from my arm, and I stood up.

"Jonathon, I have him under control." I growled through my teeth.

"What I saw in the dream was _not_ under control. Not only had Jack made an appearance, _and_ immobilized our Point Man," Jonathon motioned to Arthur, "But there was also that other man. I don't know who he was, but two shades in one dream is enough to tell me that your subconscious is _not_ ready for a job like this. You are too distracted. I'm sorry William."

I stood for a few moments, my mouth hanging open in shock, not knowing what to say, when I heard a voice speak.

"Mr. Black. Might I say something?" Arthur spoke quietly.

"What is it?" Jonathon looked over at him.

"After you had been shot, Mr. Eames confronted the projection, and had gotten rid of him."

Jonathon stared at Arthur for a moment, contemplating Arthur statement.

"Might I also add on, that if Mr. Eames isn't aware of the layout of the dream, that will make it harder for his subconscious to find us." Kelly spoke, "This 'Jack' projection can't find us in a maze that Eames doesn't know."

"Exactly," I said, silently thanking Kelly and Arthur for trying to save my arse. "Kelly can write the whole layout without me knowing. I don't have to know it, as long as I have someone with me."

"Okay, okay fine." Jonathon nodded and turned to me. "One more chance Mr. Eames. If I so much as see a glimpse of either of your shades, I'm taking you off the job. Do you understand me?"

"Yes," I nodded sincerely.

"Okay. Well then." Jonathon turned to look at Arthur. "I think you are perfectly adequate at what you do in the dreamscape. What do you think?"

"Yes, sir." Arthur nodded.

"Right then. I say we have lunch and then get started on our plan of action." Jonathon suggested.

"I agree," Kelly yawned and stood up from the lawn chair, cracking his back.

Jonathon and Kelly filed their way into the small, conjoined kitchen, and I followed Arthur. "Wait," I stopped him before we entered.

"Yes?" Arthur turned and looked at me.

"May I ask why you did that back there?" I asked him.

Arthur was quiet for a few moments, before he spoke quietly, clearing his throat. "I don't know. I guess I just didn't want to quit on this job."

"But he was going to take _me_ off not you." I trailed off, trying to look for answers in those carefully guarded brown eyes of his. He definitely had his emotional shield up right now.

"I know it's not your fault." Arthur sighed. "You can't really help it. Jonathon may be having doubts about whether or not you can do this job, but I don't. I know you can. In the dreamscape when you were confronting Ryan, I saw strength. You were able to kill him."

"It was by no means, an easy thing to do…" I trailed off, "But I was able to muster up the strength by thinking of something else."

Arthur paused and spoke slowly, as if trying to coax me, "What were you thinking of?"

I lifted my head and pressed my lips firmly together, making the point that I wasn't keen on revealing it. Arthur furrowed his brow. "If you expect me to continue this job adequately, you need to learn to trust me. You can't keep secrets from team members, especially when they could endanger the job-"

"You!" I finally blurted out, staring angrily into his chocolate eyes.

"Wh… What?" Arthur's mouth dropped open and he stuttered a bit.

"I was thinking about _you_,_"_ I said, softer, "I remembered how I felt for Ryan all those years ago, and I knew that I wouldn't be able to succumb to him in my mind, because I had already moved on… to you."

Arthur looked frozen, an expression of shock hanging on his face, but before he could pull together any amount of comprehensible words, I had brushed past him and entered the kitchen to join Kelly and Jonathon.

X-X-X-X-X

After a considerable amount of discussion along with a few bottles of scotch, the team was finally able to reach an agreement on the next step in the job. Tomorrow, Jonathon, Kelly, Arthur, Danny, Billy and I would fly to Washington D.C. in Kelly's private jet and scope out the layout of the city. The president of the United States would be our first target.

Me, being the brilliant Forger and unbelievable actor I was, would procure a security uniform and badge, and infiltrate the White House.

I sighed, running fingers through my hair as I moseyed back to my room to get ready for bed, going over the plans in my head. When summed up into a few sentences, it sounded easier than cake. However, I knew that I would have to focus solely on the job, and not let any outside emotions affect my acting skills.

As I rifled through my bureau, searching for clean pajamas, I heard footsteps, and turned to see Arthur enter the room, a fiery look on his face. I quickly whirled back around and continued my search.

My heart clenched when the door shut with a loud _slam_, and Arthur cleared his throat obviously.

"Eames. We need to talk." He said forcefully.

I turned around, plastering a calm look on my face, but internally panicking. Was Arthur really upset about what I had said?

"About?" I asked innocently.

"Stop bullshitting me. You know what I mean," Arthur's eyes flashed, not with anger, but with warning. If I didn't act serious, I would be getting hell.

I shook my head and stuck my hands in my front pockets. "I was just telling you the truth darling, just like you wanted." I spoke slowly.

"How long have you… had feelings for me?" Arthur asked, a little softer.

I met his eyes, and watched as the intensity drained form his eyes, leaving those two chocolate orbs that I loved so much. "I never said I had feelings for you, I just said that-" I tried to interject, but Arthur interrupted me.

"Oh shove it Will. Do you think I'm an idiot?" Arthur snapped, the fire returning to his eyes. My heart skipped a beat when he called me by my first name. "The way you look at me, the way you touch and hold me shamelessly, the way you _kissed me_ for Christ's sake!" Arthur shook his head. "It's gone beyond flirting Eames. I know you were just messing with my head when you first met me, but now it's different."

I felt myself grow uneasy with the look he was giving me but he continued, "You need to figure out your feelings. Because we can't go into this job with unsettled issues. So tell me now. Everything. I want to hear it." Arthur looked me up and down, waiting for my answer.

I took a few moments to form sentences in my head, finally deciding to just tell him the truth, from the very beginning. "When I first saw you in the L.A. police department, I was… overcome with lust. I thought you were the most attractive man I'd ever seen." I felt my cheeks growing warm from my blatant words, but Arthur listened with a blank face, urging me to continue. "I kept fantasizing about doing wildly inappropriate things to you. Every night, I would have dreams that were… explicit to say the least. They got so bad, my men had to wake me up so that I would stop yelling."

I dared to glance up at Arthur's face, and was surprised to see he still held a blank expression, while my cheeks had most definitely reddened a considerable amount at what I was telling him. Regardless, I continued.

"But then when I was having you drive me to Dodger Stadium, and you started to cry… I almost let you go right then, I was so overcome with guilt." I shook my head. "I hadn't anticipated feeling guilty about blackmailing you, but the feelings were stronger than I had expected. Anyways, throughout the week, I started to get more and more fond of you. But once Jack killed you in my dream, I knew that my feelings for you were definitely real. He is after you all the time, not only because he thinks you are a threat to the job, but also because he's jealous. Since he's in my head all he time, he knows how much I think about you… which is pretty much all the time."

I sighed and checked Arthur's face again, seeing that a deep crease had formed in his brow, yet his eyes still remained shielded and emotionless. I continued, "I couldn't deny it any more Arthur. I've… I've fallen in love with you." I concluded and nodded, crossing my arms casually across my chest.

Arthur stayed silent for quite a while, around three minutes or so, all the while, I crossed and uncrossed my arms, growing more and more impatient.

"This is… So. Incredibly. Dangerous." Arthur finally said and looked up at me. "Do you have any idea how endangering this is to the job?"

"Yes. I'm fully aware." I said slowly, taken aback at his words. That was not the reaction I was expecting.

"Then why?" Arthur furrowed his brow. "Why did you allow it to go this far? Why didn't you find another person to do the job? One who wouldn't mess with your emotions?"

"I-" I started then stopped. "You want the full truth?"

"Of course,"

"In all truth… I was just being selfish. I want to spend time with you. That's why I didn't let you go."

"Wow," Arthur's forehead smoothed. "This is… unexpected."

"For you or for me?" I asked.

"Both, I guess." Arthur half-smiled. "I never had this happen in any jobs when I was in dream work."

"Please just tell me what you're thinking." I urged him. "I just spilled my heart out to you, can I at least get something back?"

Arthur looked at me, contemplating, before he started slowly. "I'm not used to this… I don't usually talk about my feelings… But I'll do the best I can."

He took another deep breath and began, "When I first saw you in the police department, I admit, I did find you attractive. But like all other interfering thoughts and emotions, I shoved it to the back of my mind, and covered it with anger. Not to say the anger wasn't real, I was pissed at you for the blackmail. However, once I started to get back into going under the PASIV, I began to remember more and more why I had gotten into dream work in the first place: there is nothing like it. After I had met Jack in your dream, and you explained everything about your MPD, I began to despise you less and less. I realized how much you had struggled with him, and I saw the pain in your eyes when you told everyone about Ryan. I had never experienced heartbreak like that, but I understood how hurt you were by it. At that point, I was starting to grow easier around you. I began to think of you as a man, and not a monster… and I began to delve back into those lustful thoughts of you, that I had quickly pushed aside when I first met you." At this point, Arthur's cheeks began to turn pink. I laughed and then bit my lip, allowing him to continue.

"This morning when I woke up and ran to the bathroom," Arthur continued slowly, "It wasn't because I was sick… It was because I had a erection from a dream I had involving you."

I found myself wanting to laugh at his face when he admitted to having a boner, but held back the stifled giggles. "In this dream… Was I ravaging you mercilessly until you begged for release?" I asked coyly.

"Shut up," Arthur snapped, looking annoyed by my teasing.

"I think we've had similar dreams for each other." I chuckled, and then grew serious, looking Arthur in the face.

Arthur's expression flickered between longing and control, obviously fighting some internal battle from the intense sexual tension in the room. I cautiously took a step towards him, and was pleased when he didn't take a step back.

"Would you like me to make to reenact that dream you were talking about, darling?" I said softly, taking slowly steps towards the lean man, hoping not to scare him off like a frightened bunny.

"Eames…" Arthur spoke, his voice full of desire. "We shouldn't,"

"I know," I mouthed, finally closing the distance between our bodies, and pulling him against me in a tight embrace. Our noses met, and his hot breath mixed with mine. I longed to taste his mouth, but held back slightly, wanting to wait until his body relaxed.

"We shouldn't," Arthur repeated, this time, quieter.

"I know," I whispered again, and reached over without looking, finding the light switch and turning the lights off.

Once it had grown pitch black, I closed the distance between our mouths and tasted Arthur's sweet tongue. His arms relaxed under mine, and his hands slithered up to grip my jaw possessively, gently pulling down to open my lips. I gladly let his hot tongue into my mouth, and groaned as he pulled back and sucked hard on my lower lip.

Arthur was quite an aggressive kisser. Hopefully he was similar in bed. The thought made my cock twitch and start to grow hard against Arthur's, which I could also feel growing hard under his trousers.

My hands slid down Arthur's lower back and massaged the top of his arse, earning a low growl from the Point Man as he continued to ravage my mouth. I winced when his fingernails dug into the back of my neck, but reciprocated the pain by pinching the bottom of his arse.

"You're so fucking hot." Arthur groaned into my ear as his hand traveled down the front of my chest, and palmed my growing hardness, "And big too," I felt him smile against my neck.

I moaned when he tightened his fingers around the bulge in my pants and responded by grinding against his palm, wanting more pressure against my cock.

"You like that?" Arthur chuckled, pulling his hand back ever so slightly, teasing me with his skilled hand.

"Tease," I hissed through my teeth, attempting to pull Arthur against me, but he responded by aggressively grabbing me around the waist and pushing me solidly against the wall behind me. I gasped in surprise when his arms rested on either side of my head, essentially caging me in against the wall.

"My, you certainly are feisty," I chuckled, "I can't wait to hear you screaming under me."

"Who ever said you're going to be on top?" Arthur growled in my ear seductively, and I nearly came in my pants right there. Arthur certainly didn't appear to be the dominant one in bed, however, I wasn't complaining. It was hot as hell hearing him call the shots.

"As you wish." I said back and brought my hands up to finger his collar, and then his tie, pulling at the cloth.

Arthur's mouth found mine again in the darkness, and he kissed my lips hard, our tongues fighting sloppily for dominance, Arthur winning in the end.

His hands fumbled with my collar, and I felt a feeling start to bubble in the pit of my stomach.

_William Eames. If you don't fucking stop right now, I swear to God I will rip his goddamn head off._

My eyes flew open, and I noticeably tensed up under Arthur's hands.

He noticed, and pulled back, "Are you alright?" his hands were frozen on my half-bare chest.

I screwed my eyes shut and told Jack to go the fuck away. By God I'd rather go to hell rather than break this perfect moment with Arthur because of a stupid part of my subconscious.

"I'm fine darling. I just thought I heard something…" I let myself relax, and then pulled Arthur against me.

Arthur was tense at first, but then he slowly continued with what he was doing before, working my now open shirt off of my body and letting it fall to the ground.

His long thin fingers swept over my arms and pectorals, lingering over my nipples, and finally lowered to feel each dip of my abdominal muscles. His hands felt like heaven on my body.

I sighed under his touch and raised my hands to find his tie, loosening it forcefully, and yanking it off his neck. His hands quickly flew to mine and slammed my arms against the wall. His hot mouth found my ear and growled warningly.

"I'm in control William. Let it happen." He whispered.

I shuddered at his words and gladly obliged, feeling him nimbly undo his shirt buttons close to my chest, and heard the soft rustle of the shirt fall to the ground. Now we were both half-naked.

His skin was like silk as he sank in against my chest and began to kiss my neck, grinding his fully hard cock against mine. I moaned, and longed so badly to reach up and touch his magnificent body, but if I did, he would only get mad. On second thought…

Before I could do anything else, his smooth hands crept to the back of my lower back, and slid under the fabric of my trousers to rest on the top of my arse. I moaned against his mouth and willed him to speed up this tantalizing foreplay. If I wanted, I could easily throw him over my shoulder, pin him down on the mattress on the other side of the room, and pound into him mercilessly. I was quite more muscular than him, and I had a good three or four inches on the man, however, it did wonders for my erection when he ordered me around. So I let him have control.

Arthur finally brought his hand to the front of my waist and shamelessly ripped the belt buckle and belt altogether from the loops on my trousers. I growled, incredibly turned on by his aggressiveness. Next, he deftly undid the fly and shoved the fabric down to my knees, urging me to lift my feet.

I frantically kicked off my shoes and socks and stepped out of my trousers. Next, I felt Arthur stepped away from me, and I heard the rustle of clothing, the click of a belt buckle and the slide of fabric over skin. I wanted so badly to watch Arthur strip, but I did as he had told me and waiting patiently in my boxer shorts leaning against the wall with a fully hard penis.

What Arthur did next, surprised me beyond words. His hands found my hair and pushed down forcefully, so hard that I crumpled to my knees in front of him.

"Suck me," he ordered gently, guiding my hands up to his bare hips. I licked my lips and pinched his skin in between my finger gently, moving my hands to find his shaft. I found it easily and let my breath linger long enough to get Arthur panting in anticipation. Finally deciding I had teased him long enough, I slid my tongue over the head of his already wet cock and took him in my mouth fully.

Arthur stifled a groan and bucked his hips forward slightly, so that his cock hit the back of my throat. I choked slightly, but pulled back and hollowed my cheeks, sucking hard and tightening my lips around the base of his shaft.

"Fuck, your mouth is so hot," Arthur moaned and ran his fingers through my hair.

I brought my mouth up and felt the silky skin of his penis against my tongue, relishing in the amazing feeling. I had never imagined that anything like this would ever happen between Arthur and I.

Feeling bold, I brought my lips up to the tip of Arthur's erection and nibbled on the head gently. Arthur hissed and I felt his fingers tighten in my hair.

"Watch it Eames." Arthur growled quietly, and I smiled and continued to suck on Arthur's velvety cock.

Arthur began to pant again, taking air in quick short breaths as I began to suck harder and harder, intensified the grip I had on his hips. There would definitely be bruises tomorrow.

Arthur's pace of pushing in and out of my mouth was growing more frantic, and it was growing harder for me to keep up with. My own pulsing cock was growing more and more painful, so I slid one hand down, hoping Arthur would notice and silently palmed myself as Arthur moaned and slid in and out of me with wet noises.

Just when I had thought Arthur was going to come, his hand met the side of my cheek and gently pulled my face away, so that I released his penis from my mouth. "Do you have any lube?" he asked in the dark.

"Shit, no," It didn't occur to me that I would ever be getting this far with Arthur, so I hadn't bothered. "I've got hand lotion."

"Hurry," was all Arthur said as he pulled away from me. I assumed he was fumbling his way over to the bed in the darkness. I scrambled up to my feet, temporarily disoriented from kneeling for a long time, but able to feel my way over to my suitcase. I rummaged through the front pocket and grinned when my hand circled around the tube of lotion.

"Arthur, where are you, love?" I called out into the darkness.

"Over here," I heard a muffled sound from across the room, and I pictured the skinny brunette lying seductively on our mattress.

"I'm coming," I said a little quieter and took quick steps towards where I had heard his voice. Eventually, my foot bumped against the mattress and I extended my hands to search for Arthur. I was met with two strong hands, which grabbed me by the biceps and guided me onto the mattress. I fell onto my hands and knees and shuddered in anticipation as I felt Arthur take the lotion from me. I listened for the pop of the cap, and the soft squish of the liquid being dispensed and waiting patiently with my arse in the air.

"Eames are you ready?" I heard Arthur ask me in a hushed whisper.

"Yes," I trembled, remembering how long it had been since I'd gotten laid. Ever since Ryan, I hadn't slept with any other men.

I was pulled from my thoughts when a cautious finger poked inside me, causing a deep shudder to rack my body.

"Dear… God," I bit back the words. Arthur's finger pushed in more and more coating the inside of me with slick lotion. His finger finally stopped about halfway up and I willing him to go farther.

"Am I hurting you?" He asked worriedly.

"Yes, but Christ it's good," I moaned and rutted down on his finger, pushing him all the way up until he hit my prostate.

I cried out and brought my head down, biting the skin on my forearm. Arthur placed a steady hand on my lower back and slowly pulled out, and then pushed back in again, moving his finger 360 degrees to coat every inch of me in lotion. I chuckled and bit my lips, holding back another pained cry of pleasure when he pulled out and inserted a second lotion-y finger up inside of me.

"You're so tight," Arthur observed, opening his fingers and causing me to inhale sharply. I continued my slow steady pace of pushing back down onto his slick fingers, feeling him go deeper into me. Whenever his fingers brushed my prostate, I would let out a strangled moan and my skin would tingle. His hand that rested on my lower back began massaging in slow circles, loosening me up for Arthur's dick, which was quite sizeable from what my mouth could tell.

I began to feel the sweat gathering in between my shoulder blades as Arthur spread his fingers wider and I willed him to just fuck me already.

"Bastard, you're drawing this out way too long," I hissed and rutted down further on his fingers, hearing him chuckle in response.

He finally pulled out his fingers slowly and I heard him squeeze out more lotion. I shuddered in anticipation as I listened to the wet noises of him preparing his erection, and nearly came right there. I had never wanted Arthur so badly at that moment.

All my thoughts and worries disappeared the moment that I felt Arthur's cock enter about an inch into me. My mouth dropped open in a silent cry, and I formed a fist and pounded it against the mattress beneath me. Arthur's hands grabbed my hips and gently yet firmly guided his pulsating wet cock inside of me. I nearly choked on my breath, and let out a high-pitched whine as Arthur filled me. I felt as if I were being ripped in two.

"I can't believe this is happening," I murmured, groaning as he pulled out and pushed in again, this time a little more forceful. A ragged scream fell from my lips when Arthur located my prostrate and continued to reach the pleasure spot as he pounded into me repeatedly.

I took a moment to close my eyes and concentrate on the noises Arthur was making. Was he enjoying this? He had been quiet this entire time. Was he doing this out of pure lust? Maybe he was just caught up in the moment.

I silently told at myself to stop overanalyzing the situation, until suddenly, a familiar voice entered my head.

_Stupid queer. You disgust me._

I gasped and felt my grasp on reality slipping ever so slightly. Shit, no! Jack was fighting his way out!

Arthur continued to fuck me, even as I grew tense.

_Let me end this now._

I let out a moan that racked my entire body, feeling Arthur come inside of me.

"Arthur, no," I moaned falling forward ever so slightly. Suddenly, my muscles spasmed, and a blinding white-hot light enshrouded my entire body. It felt like everything was on fire around me.

I let out a body-shocking yell as waves of pleasure racked my body, and I slumped forward, feeling Arthur leave my body. I let my eye flutter shut, and suddenly, everything around me slipped into an untouchable darkness.

X-X-X-X-X

_And when we come back we'll be dressed in black_

_And you'll scream our names aloud_

_And we won't eat and we won't sleep_

_We'll drag bodies from their graves_

X-X-X-X-X

**A/N: HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!**

**Yeesh it's been awhile sorry bout that. Anyways, I hope most of y'all are still with me! I'm still goin' somewhere with this.**

**Anyways, I've been meaning to post these, and I bet you've been wondering what some of my characters look like. Here are pictures of what my made-up characters look like! Let me know what you think in the reviews: (copy & paste url and take out the spaces!)**

**This is Billy (Eames' Irish right-hand-man): Gerard Butler**

**h t t p : / / w w w . m a n h a i r s t y l e s . n e t / r e s i m l e r / g e r a r d - b u t l e r - 5 . j p g**

**This is Danny (Eames' driver): Brady Corbet**

**h t t p : / / i m a g e s 2 . f a n p o p . c o m / i m a g e / p h o t o s / 1 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 / b R A D y - b r a d y - c o r b e t - 1 2 2 1 2 8 6 6 - 2 6 5 - 3 9 9 . j p g**

**This is Jonathon the Extractor: Jude Law**

**h t t p : / / i 2 . l i s t a l . c o m / i m a g e / 9 7 1 0 3 5 / 6 0 0 f u l l - j u d e - l a w . j p g**

**h t t p : / / w w w . m a n h a i r s t y l e s . n e t / r e s i m l e r / j u d e - l a w - h a i r - s t y l e s - 0 . j p g**

**This is Kelly the Architect: Alejandro Fernandez**

**h t t p : / / w w w . s w e e t s l y r i c s . c o m / i m a g e s / i m g _ g a l / 2 9 4 _ a l e j a n d r o - f e r n a n d e z . j p g**

**h t t p : / / m y p l a y . c o m / f i l e s / i m a g e c a c h e / p h o t o _ 3 4 5 _ s q u a r e / f i l e s / a r t i s t _ i m a g e s / A l e j a n d r o % 2 0 F e r n a n d e z . j p g**

**aaaaaand last but not least, this is Ryan (Eames' former luvah): James Marsden**

**h t t p : / / u s e r s e r v e - a k . l a s t . f m / s e r v e / _ / 3 8 6 7 2 5 6 9 / J a m e s + M a r s d e n + P N G . p n g**

**yaaaay for hot sexy men ;) happy new years and I'll see you guys in 2012!**


	10. Chapter 10

_And oh, poor Atlas_

_The world's beast of a burden_

_You've been holding on a long time_

_And all this longing_

_And the ships are left to rust_

_That's what the water gave us_

X-X-X-X-X

Chapter 10: What the Water Gave Me

_**Arthur**_

I groaned, feeling every muscle in my body cry out in protest as I opened my eyes and lifted my neck. I stared at the dark wall I was facing and tried to remember what I had done last night that could make me so sore. Then I remembered.

Oh yeah. I had fucked Eames.

Moaning, I screwed my eyes shut and braced myself to face the Brit, who would inevitably tease me endlessly about it. However, a small part of me wanted to roll over and wrap my arms around the man sleeping next to me and talk for hours and never let go.

But what would I tell him? Last night had undoubtedly been the most amazing night of my life, but how could I get myself to say that? And what did it mean? I might have been attracted to the man, but I could never allow myself to have feelings for him. And did he reciprocate those feelings? Or had he just told me he "loved" me to get in my pants?

No. This couldn't happen. I'm supposed to be the good guy in this situation. I can't fall in love with a criminal.

Staring the wall, I tried to form words that I would say to Eames when he woke up, and finally got myself to roll over. My mouth dropped open in surprise when I reached over and found nothing but the empty wrinkled sheet next to me, cold and hard. Eames must have gotten up a long time ago.

Grunting, I rolled up into a sitting position and rubbed the sleep from my eyes, rolling over onto the cold ground and trudging over to the door in the dark. I felt around on the wall and finally located the light switch, flicking it on. I turned and located the pajama bottoms I had carelessly thrown on the ground when I was stripping last night. I smiled slightly at the memory and pulled the pants on, before turning and exiting the room.

The hall outside was pitch black. I frowned in confusion, wondering if it was still nighttime.

Turning, I made my way down the hall, fumbling blinding in the total darkness. My heart pounded in slight anxiety, and my palms began to sweat.

I had always had a slight fear of the dark, but it had never been so severe until now. I held my hand up in front of my face and waved, feeling my heart clench when I saw absolutely nothing. I blinked, and continued along the wall, taking slow steady steps in what I hoped was towards the bathroom.

After what seemed like a few minutes, I finally felt something. My hand jerked back when I felt my fingertips brush against something soft and warm. Shocked, I cradled my hand as if it had been burned.

"Hello," I called out cautiously, and listened hard in the dead silence.

My heart pounded so hard, I could barely hear anything else. I swallowed the lump forming in my throat, and leaned my head forward a bit. In the complete silence, I strained my ears and held my breath, feeling my heart skip a beat when I was finally able to detect something…

Breathing.

Less than a foot from my face. I felt someone's warm breath ghost over my face and I froze in terror.

Then I turned and tried to run. But it was too late. Two strong hands grabbed my shoulders and yanked me forward and around, slamming into the corner of the concrete wall. Very hard. My head hit the corner with a very loud _thud_ and I yelped in pain, and then moaned as a wave of nausea crashed over me and my limbs went limp.

The hands on my shoulder lowered to my waist to catch me as my legs gave out, and yanked me up and threw me over a shoulder. My arms hung over my head as the person carried my briskly down the hall.

The sound of footsteps was beginning to grow fuzzy around me as all the blood rushed to my head, and my scalp pounded with pain as something warm and wet trickled down the back of my head.

A lazy moan fell from my mouth, as the bouncing from being carried did not do well for my injured head. The hands carrying me were firm and strong, gripping me almost painfully by the thighs. I looked down to the ground beneath, trying to hold onto the last shred of consciousness that I had left. A dim glow of light was beginning to become visible and I watched at the shadow of the man carrying me became more pronounced as we neared the room.

Light hit me like a punch in the face as I screwed my eyes shut and winced in pain. Saliva dripped my mouth as the man carrying me over his shoulder finally stopped and pulled me forward, letting me fall back onto the cot.

It took a vision for my eyes to adjust to the light, and for my vision to stop blurring. I leant back against the wall, my head spinning, and looked up at my attacker.

Eames stood before me, standing fully clothed in all black, hair perfectly neat and combed, and face clean-shaven.

I stared up at him disbelievingly, my mouth still open and drooling slightly. Eames stared at me, a slight grin ghosting his lips. But something seemed different. He looked more guarded, more serious, but more importantly, more dangerous.

I lifted my head and stared him in the eye, feeling my heart rate increase as I finaly noticed what was different about him.

The usual mischievous glint that lit up his blue eyes was gona, and replaced with something dark and sinister. Something evil.

At that very moment, something clicked in my mind as realization hit me.

Eames was no longer in control.

"Hello, Arthur" Jack finally spoke in a voice much darker and malicious.

I swallowed heavily and desperately tried to clear my clouded vision, but pain still pounded at the back of my head, and now the warm sticky blood was running down my neck and I could feel it matting in my hair. I opened my mouth, but all that came out was garbled moaning.

Jack grinned evilly and crouched down in front of me, his eyes becoming level with mine.

I gaped horror and tried to push away from the wall, but my limbs were heavy and my eyelids threatened to fall shut into unconsciousness.

"Afraid of me?" Jack sneered, "You should be."

I shut my eyes and shook my head. No, god no. This can't be happening.

"Would you like to know what I'm going to do to you, Arthur Davis?" Jack spoke, in an uncomfortably calm voice.

I opened my mouth again to speak, "Please…"

"First I'm going to tie you down. Then I'm going to break every single bone in your body, starting with your toes." His fingers crept across the mattress and gripped my bare foot, making me shudder in fear. "Then I'm going to carve into your skin ever so slowly… and listen to you scream and beg for mercy."

Jack's words became lower and raspier with each word and his hand moved up my foot and grasped my ankle in a vice-like grip. I screwed my eyes shut again and blinked, my vision slowly starting to clear.

Jack's eyes flashed with something callous, and almost inhuman as he continued. "You are going to die for real this time Arthur. William has taken his obsession with you too far, and last night was the final straw. I will not stand to be cooped up in the mind of a fucking _queer_!" Jack's lips turned up in disgust as the last couple of words, and his words stung like acid. "But unfortunately, I have no choice. So I'm doing the next best thing by killing you. And trust me, I will enjoy it. Almost as much as I enjoyed killing Ryan and his family." With that Jack let out a menacing cackle and grabbed me forcefully by the shoulders.

I yelped and squirmed as he tried to push me down on the mattress, but was still weak from being knocked in the head. Jack's hands flattened my back against the cot as his legs swung over and straddled me.

Reaching into his pocket Jack pulled out a pair of gleaming silver handcuffs, and I swung my hips up, attempting to throw him off balance as he fumbled with the cuffs.

After the third try, Jack growled as he tipped to the side, and I threw my left leg up and kicked him in the chest, throwing him off of me completely. Standing up quickly and carefully, I placed a hand on the wall to steady myself, head still spinning, and reminded myself not to injure Jack too severely, as it was Eames' body as well.

Jack wasn't on the ground for long. The time it had taken for me to catch my balance in a standing position was about the same it took for Jack to stumble to his feet and come barreling towards me.

I yelped again and made a break for the door, plunging into the darkness blindly. "Billy!" I screamed at the top of my lungs, hoping that the Irishman would wake and do something to ward Jack off of me.

I continued my trek into the pitch blackness, hearing Jack's pounding footsteps behind me. I continued to run silently, my bare feet hitting the concrete painfully. Hopefully, the darkness would throw Jack off guard.

Not knowing where I was going, I continued with my arms outstretched, hoping I had woken at least some of Eames' men, who would turn on the lights, since I had no idea where any switches were.

My prayers were answered when I heard a few moans and rustling of clothing. I sped up my pace and then yelled out in surprise when my feet hit something hard on the ground. It was a person.

I felt my foot catch and my world turn upside down as I fell face first and landed on something else… another person.

"Christ!" A voice yelled in the dark, and I felt the body move underneath me.

"Neil, turn on the bloody lights!" Another muffled voice moaned.

I groaned in pain as my head began to spin again and I rolled off the man that I had landed on.

"What the bloody fuck is going on?" Said a familiar Irish voice.

"Billy?" I murmured

I squinted and moaned once the lights flashed on and I looked up into Billy's face who crouched over me, concerned. "Jack! Jack, he's coming… he's…"

I tried to get the warning out but my speech was beginning to slur, and I shut my eyes and threw my arm over my eyelids. Darkness shrouded my vision and I felt my body grow heavy and dull as unconsciousness overtook me slowly.

As everything began to fade, I heard the pounding of footsteps, the sound of Billy clambering to his feet, and the yell of a few random men.

"Jack!" Billy's voice roared above me and then there was a _crack_ and buzzing and the _thud_ of a body hitting the concrete.

With each second, everything around me was growing fuzzier. But suddenly, Billy's voice was in my ear again and hands were shaking my shoulder frantically, and I was drooling again and my eyes were half open. I was met with a pair of green eyes, eyebrows turned up in worry.

"Arthur," Billy repeated, this time a little less far away.

I moaned in response and blinked, opening my eyes slowly, this time all the way. A gentle hand felt the drying blood on the back of my neck, and another hand inspected my arms and legs for any fractures.

"Arthur," Billy repeated, this time it was loud and clear.

My eyes opened wider as I stared up at Billy and mumbled, "Where's… Jack?"

"I stunned him." Billy explained calmly, holding up a taser and motioning to a motionless body lying on the threshold of the room.

"What's…. the time?" I murmured again.

"It's about 2 in the morning," Billy explained again.

I moaned and attempted to lift my head, but was immediately stopped by Billy.

"Whoa, don't even think about moving, Davis." Billy moved his pillow over and supported my neck, laying my head back, "You most likely have a concussion." He then turned and barked to one of the men, "Get me an ice pack and a towel."

"What's going to happen to Will?" I said again, a little more coherently.

"Well…" Billy trailed off, "Whenever Jack is in control, I just have to wait it out until Will comes to. It could be hours, or days, or even weeks. It depends. Right now, they're probably up in his mind battling it out. It's very hard for Will you see…" Billy grew silent. "Don't worry about it Arthur. He ends up fine usually, just a little shaken up."

I nodded slowly and closed my eyes as Danny returned with an ice pack.

"Here you go. How's it goin' Arthur?" he asked in a concerned voice.

"Fine," I said quietly and opened my eyes. "Head just hurts like _shit_, god!" I winced as the man feeling the back of my neck touched the place where the skin on my scalp had been torn.

"Sorry mate," he said empathetically, and I recognized him as Neil, the Brit who had helped me make my totem.

My totem. I raised my arm and reached into the pocket of my pajama bottoms and fished out the pocket watch, checking the oppositely ticking hands. I sighed in relief and retired the watch back to my pocket as Billy placed the ice pack over my forehead.

X-X-X-X-X

After about an hour of being conscious, my head had stopped spinning, and Billy let me stand up slowly. My head still hurt where the skin had split open, but he concluded that I had not had a concussion.

Eames' men had arranged his body on one of their mattresses, and everyone decided to wait until he awoke to do anything else.

When he did wake up, I was sitting next to him with a concerned look on my face, and Billy crouched over him on the other side, gun in hand, just in case Jack was still in control.

His eyelids fluttered open and I watched his pupils dilate and immediately flicker over to me. I held my breath as he stared at me for a moment, and sit up slowly, blinking as he looked around him.

"William," I spoke cautiously.

"Arthur," Eames spoke gently. I looked into his eyes and saw the familiar spark of life and optimism that Eames had, and I knew that it wasn't Jack.

I don't know why, but at that moment, I started to cry. Maybe it was the weight of everything that had happened in the last couple of days came crashing down on me… or maybe I was just thankful that Will had won his internal battle. Maybe it was both. I let a tear slide down my cheek as I reached up and touched Eames' hand, not knowing how to express how I was feeling.

"Oh god," Eames murmured after he noticed the bandage wrapped around my head, and he pulled me closer to him. "What did he do to you?"

I shook my head and placed my hand atop his, "He tried to kill me. But I got away. And… and… God. It took me by surprise. How did it happen?"

"I don't know… the last thing I remember was you and me-" Eames immediately stopped and looked over at Billy, embarrassed. "Uh, Bill… do you mind giving us a moment?"

Billy chuckled and stood up. "Glad you're back, boss," he then patted him on the shoulder and walked away to join the other men who were cleaning up their sleeping bags and pulling out the lawn chairs.

Eames turned back to me, "The last thing I remembered was you giving me the most amazing orgasm of my life."

If I hadn't been sitting down, my knees would have collapsed and I would have lost it. Suddenly, everything that had happened last night came crashing back down over me, and my cheeks began to burn with embarrassment.

Eames laughed and clasped my cheek with his warm hand. I involuntarily leant into his touch. "I didn't expect any of that from you darling. Might I say, now that I know you are such a tiger in bed, I will be seducing you more often."

I smiled slightly, still feeling my cheeks burn with embarrassment, and spoke, "Eames. We need to talk about… last night,"

"Okay," Eames spoke slowly lowered his hand to mine and held it tightly.

"Last night was… so incredible." I began, "I don't know what it was, but it felt so _right_. Like we were…" I trailed off, realizing how ridiculously cheesy I was beginning to sound.

"Made for each other?" Eames finished, raising his sandy colored eyebrows.

I chuckled, "Well it sounds corny, but that's how I felt. It was like we fit."

Eames nodded, urging me to continue.

I sighed and spoke again, "But… I keep going back to the fact that you kidnapped me. This isn't right. We have nothing in common. I know you can't help how you are, but honestly," I paused, knowing I would have to say it eventually, "Jack. He terrifies me. I don't understand how something so incredibly evil could even exist."

"Darling, I am so sorry," Eames immediately clasped my hand, "I had gotten caught up in our moment last night, and Jack took the opportunity to occupy my mind. I was weak. I should have known it would happen, but I forgot once you began ripping my clothes off…"

I blushed again, lowering my eyes and shaking my head, "I think we should wait until the job is over and see where we are. I know how you feel about me, but I still need time to figure myself out now. I am very confused. Days ago, I was hating your guts and wanting to kill you , but over the course of the week, I've learned so much about you… and I don't know what to think yet."

I felt my heart rip in two as I watched Eames' face fall. His eyebrows furrowed in sadness, but he nodded and spoke, "That's fine darling. Besides, we can't jeopardize the job. Jonathon already thinks we're fucking."

"Well… we just proved him right," I said.

"Yeah… but I also promised him I would take control of Jack. So he cannot know about what just happened. Alright?" Eames clasped my hands firmly and looked my in the eye.

I nodded, "I understand,"

"Good," Eames nodded and stood up. "Well do you want to go get some sleep while I set up?"

"Nah," I rubbed my eyes and stood up as well, checking my pocket watch. "It's already 3 o' clock. Plus I don't think I can sleep after that. I'm too shaken up."

"Alright," Eames nodded and looked me in the eyes.

I locked gazes with him and stared into his eyes. He smiled and leaned in slightly, taking my hands in his again. I let my eyes flutter shut as his lips closed around mine, and we shared a brief kiss. However, in that brief moment, I realized one thing:

I needed Eames. I didn't know yet how I felt about him, but I knew that I needed him. I needed his soft full lips, and his long eyelashes, and his soft golden hair, and his velvety skin. I needed the brush of stubble against my jaw and the smell of cigarettes and the masculine voice speaking my name ever so softly.

"Arthur," Eames lifted my chin with his forefinger. I looked up questioningly. Eames smiled and continued, "Let's get you cleaned up." His other hand stroked the back of my head, tenderly touching the place where my skull had been hit, and blood was now dry and crusty.

I shivered, remembering the feeling of terror when I realized that Jack was going to kill me. Jack had to go. I wouldn't let him ruin this. As we walked to the bathroom, Eames' arm around my shoulder, I vowed that I would rid William Eames of the demon in his head.

X-X-X-X-X

I sighed and looked at my watch expectantly, then looked up and around the bustling airport. Kelly was supposed to be here by now.

Shifting the suitcase in my hand, I tapped my foot impatiently and straightened the striped silk tie I wore with the new Navy Ralph Lauren suit that Jonathon had gotten me as a gift. I was extremely pleased, as I wouldn't have to wear Eames' god-awful patterned shirts and mismatched ill-fitting ties, since Jonathon had also taken the liberty of assembling an extensive and rather expensive wardrobe for the job. Apparently I needed to look more "like a politician".

My heart skipped a beat when I watched the back of a black-haired man's head pass in front of me. I waited as he lifted his cell phone and turned his face ever so slightly, I caught sight of his profile. It was Kelly.

Finally! I looked around casually and began to walk over to the security gate, close behind Kelly. Turning my head ever so slightly, I caught sight of Jonathon, who had already gone through security and stood waiting at the Starbucks on the inside of the airport.

I couldn't look behind me, but I knew Eames was there, wearing his colored contacts and dark brown wig and plaster facial mask to cover his identity. The PASIV device had already been shipped by Jonathon's personal service to our hotel in Washington D.C., as it would never get through airport security.

Taking out my fake passport, I handed it to the gentleman in security, who scanned over it mindlessly, and waved me through. I took in a deep breath to still my madly beating heart, and passed through the metal detector and body scanner, risking a glance backwards to catch Eames' eyes. He barely looked at me for a second before he rummaged through his coat and pulled out his fake passport and I.D.

The guard thumbed through the pages of Eames' passport a little longer than he had with mine. I turned my head back to the front so I wouldn't look suspicious. When they finished scanning me, I looked back and saw the guard looking between Eames and the passport suspiciously.

"Shit" I muttered under my breath, wanting to do something. However, I knew I had to continue with the plan, so I turned and picked up my luggage, hoping to God that Eames would get through.

I finally reached the terminal and set my suitcase down, stopping to look around. Kelly sat reading a newspaper, Jonathon stood sipping his coffee and checking his watch, and Eames was nowhere in sight.

I began to feel my heart rate increasing. What would happen if Eames got caught? Jesus Christ. I swallowed and turned around again, scanning the crowds of people.

I tried to make eye contact with Jonathon, but he simply stared ahead out of the window. I knew that if one of us got off track, we had to continue with the plan so we didn't put the entire job at risk, but I couldn't help the uncontrollable fear that something had happened to Eames.

I cleared my throat rather loudly, trying to get the attention of either of the men. Jonathon's eyes flickered to mine ever so slightly and he shook his head once, signaling me to remain calm.

"Excuse me sir," a deep throaty voice said to my right, and I looked over in surprise as Eames walked past me in his disguise, a slight grin on his lips. "Sorry 'bout that," he said in his fake American accent and continued on his way, sitting opposite Kelly in the terminal seats.

I inhaled deeply and closed my eyes in relief. So far the plan was all going smoothly. Soon we would be in Washington D.C., incepting the president of the United States.

X-X-X-X-X

_Cause they took your loved ones_

_But returned them in exchange for you_

_But would you have it any other way?_

_Would you have it any other way?_

_You couldn't have it any other way_

X-X-X-X-X


End file.
